


Impossible Emblem

by Cormag_Ravenstaff



Category: Fire Emblem Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Detectives, F/F, F/M, Spies & Secret Agents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-15
Updated: 2015-09-02
Packaged: 2018-04-14 21:46:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 28
Words: 105,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4581279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cormag_Ravenstaff/pseuds/Cormag_Ravenstaff
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A team of secret agents from SHEPHERD are assembled to stop foreign powers, criminals and to save Ylisse at the same time. Similarly, a team of detectives are trying to keep the streets safe and take down criminals within Ylisse. Secret spies, deadly plots and the world on the verge of war all threaten both teams.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. For Your Eyes Only

**Author's Note:**

> Mirrored from my FFnet account.
> 
> No characters have their canon relationships unless I state otherwise. This story contains characters from every FE game in it. And it was inspired by the Mission Impossible movies.

Job #0

For Your Eyes Only:

All information that you receive is for you alone. If you choose to reveal said information, we will have no choice but to disavow all knowledge of said secrets. If you are caught revealing our secrets, we at SHEPHERD have the right to deny any affiliation with you or your team. You will be hunted down and terminated. Good luck, Agent.

_It all happened very quickly. The assassination was only the start. To be fair, she wasn't well liked, even by her family. But a Princess is a Princess. And Ferox had to pay. But no one expected Plegia to enter the war. As for why they got involved, you do not have a high enough level of clearance to know that._

_Ylisse, Ferox and Plegia would have destroyed each other, leaving Valm to conquer. But one team of SHEPHERDs was able to stop that. A daring plan was concocted that could have spelt their deaths. But they stopped the ones responsible. Or so we thought._

_I would know, I was part of that team seven years ago. That's why I was promoted. Now it's my job to assemble the next great team. And they won't even know how much we depend upon them._

_-The Director_

* * *

Ylissean District Courthouse  
Virion Chandler

"OBJECTION!"

Virion slammed fist down on the table in front of him, "I'd ask that you prove that, Ms. Dawson!"

Eirika Dawson glared at him from where she stood in the Defense stand, "We already saw the photographs yesterday, Mr. Chandler. My client was not in a single one of those pictures!"

The Judge slammed his gavel down, "Prosecutor Chandler, this is the third and final day of the trial. If you have nothing to say that has not already been proven, rest you case."

Virion Chandler, "I apologize, your honor. But I am not finished yet."

"Then what are you waiting for?" Eirika asked.

Virion chuckled to himself, "Why don't we look at this case from the very beginning, shall we?"

Half of the gallery groaned. To them it seemed obvious that the defendant was innocent. And Dew Thompson was a very innocent looking person. The gallery was far fuller than usual. Trials like this didn't happen very often. A murder in the precinct? It didn't happen. And the gunning down of two respectable detectives? The public was hungry for the killer. But only a halfwit couldn't tell that Dew was innocent. The defendant stood in a roped off section guarded by three people near the defense stand. It gave Virion, who was on the opposite side, direct eye contact with Dew.

Eirika yawned, "Wake me up when it's over."

Virion cleared his throat, "This case all started with a simple thievery. The accused, Mr. Thompson, was found in the precinct holding evidence from our evidence room. But was this a simple case of thievery? Goodness no, for later that day two detectives were found in an evidence locker. One was Detective Leila Gryfflet who was injured having been shot twice near the heart. The other was Detective Inspector Marcus Olson."

"He was shot in the head, if I remember correctly?" the Judge asked.

"Yes, your honor. Naturally, the police arrested Dew Thompson since he was without an alibi at the time of the crime and he had obviously been in the evidence room-" Virion was cut off.

"Objection! You can't prove that, Chandler," Eirika said.

Virion only smiled and shook his head, "Ms. Dawson, as majestic a woman you are, you should have checked out the background of your client far more carefully."

"Meaning what?" she said slowly.

"Meaning the man you are defending right now is actually a famous thief, who steals for hire," Virion said smugly. "Direct your attention to this file folder of the high profile thieves of our time. Dew Thompson is sitting at number five." Virion handed the file folder to the bailiff.

Or perhaps not as innocent as they thought.

Eirika slammed her hands on the table, "What is this!?"

"I merely asked some of my friends to look into his background," Virion shrugged. No need to mention that his friends were secret agents that worked at one of the most feared agencies in the world.

"Why, I do believe this is all in order," the Judge said. "It's the real thing. Our defendant is a thief!"

Now the gallery was at attention.

Eirika fumed, "That doesn't prove my client is a murderer!"

"Patience, Ms. Dawson. I would bet my cravat that we'll have our murderer before the day is up," the prosecutor said, making careful eye contact with her. Eirika's lips curled with disgust as she looked at the fancily dressed prosecutor.

Eirika settled back down and continued to glare at Virion.

_Guess I'm not popular with all of the ladies._

Virion looked up at the gallery and made eye contact with his mentor, Renault Robespierre and his fellow colleague Marisa Beckett. Renault caught his look and nodded. Both were renown prosecutors, Renault being probably the best in the business.

Feeling reassured, Virion began the final steps of his plan.

"Now, I do not believe Mr. Thompson is the murderer. He is a thief, not a killer. Tell me Dew, did you have a contract to steal evidence from the evidence storage room?" Virion said, looking at the man sitting in his designated area of the courtroom.

Dew hesitated, then nodded, "I was hired to steal evidence. I don't know why or who hired me, it was just another job. I'm no murderer though!" There were several gasps throughout the gallery. Hearing a confession from a man's own mouth was far more important than what prosecutors had to say.

Virion nodded, satisfied, "If Dew is telling the truth, then I believe we need to find a new culprit. And as we established early on, Dew, nor anyone else appears in the security photos of the crime scene. Ergo-"

Eirika slammed her hands on the table furiously, "Get on with it."

"The photos were tampered with. They're fakes," Virion said.

There was silence, then…

"Hold it! Those photos were authenticated, they can't be fake!" Eirika yelled.

Virion shook his head with a smile, "That's because they're real too."

The Judge was confused, "How can they be real and fake at the same time!?"

"The timestamp, your honor. The murderer only had to cut off the time stamp, then we would never know when it was taken. But, when shown next to another photograph, you can clearly see the timestamp is not there!" Virion shouted. "But we never checked them against other pictures that had been take, did we?"

"But how would these 'fake' photos get into this trial?" the Judge asked.

Virion held up a finger, "Patience your honor. All in due time. Now, yesterday after the trial I went and looked for the actual security footage from the day, and it had been deleted. However…"

The gallery got on the edge of their seats. It was time for Virion's turnabout he usually made of the case.

"However the police had already made copies, just as they do daily. Photos of the day are kept for two weeks before being disposed, it's protocol. And the YPD were kind enough to give me them!" Virion said triumphantly.

Virion handed the photos to the bailiff who handed them to the Judge. Virion kept a careful eye on his opponent in the courtroom.

"What…? Ms. Dawson! This is you in these pictures!" the Judge shouted in surprise. There was a collective gasp throughout the entire gallery, as well as from Dew Thompson.

Eirika only looked maliciously at Virion, "Who are you, Chandler?"

"I'm a Prosecutor," Virion said simply. Inwardly he was celebrating and laughing. He had her.

She shook her head, "No, who are you really?"

Virion merely smirked and bowed, "No one of consequence."

"Good. Then I won't feel guilty!" Eirika dropped all pretenses and exposed the gun she had been holding. A gunshot rang out!

Virion felt as though he was in slow motion. The bullet smashed into his midsection violently. But there was no blood! Just the  _thump_  that went unnoticed by Ms. Dawson. Virion Chandler felt his back collide with the floor. Grunting with irritation, he checked the gunshot 'wound.'

"She better not have gotten my cravat!" he whispered to himself, annoyed. Of course he was wearing a bulletproof vest. A SHEPHERD couldn't be taken advantage of so easily. But even with one on, it still hurt some when a bullet traveling hundreds of miles per hour struck him in the chest.

"Nobody move!" yelled Eirika furiously, her blue hair swinging back and forth as she whipped around, pointing the gun to and fro. The gallery, thankfully wasn't screaming and trying to run away. Oh sure, they were certainly ducking and hiding for cover, but no screaming. If one were to look in the back of the gallery, they would see Marisa and Renault in a ready position to jump up and do something.

Virion took a deep breath from behind the Prosecutor's bench. Eirika couldn't see him starting to get up since it obstructed her view. He took gasping breaths, using all his concentration to keep them silent.

Lithely, he stood up. Thankfully, her back was to him and he reached into the evidence envelope he had on his desk from earlier in the trial. Pulling the murder weapon out, he pointed it at Eirika. It was a typical handgun, a standard issue to all of the YPD. His finger tightened on the trigger as he heard the familiar crack of a gunshot.

The bullet struck Ms. Dawson in the shoulder. Her face lit up with surprise, and immediately went to horror as she screamed in pain. She dropped her pistol and fell to the ground holding her shoulder and screaming.

All was silent and Virion bent down to Eirika's ear and muttered quietly so only she would hear, "Virion Chandler, Agent of SHEPHERD." Virion smirked at her horrified expression and looked up at the gallery, "All in a day's work, folks." And he bowed with a smile on his face. After all, this was what he lived for.

* * *

Abandoned Ylissean Military Facility  
Frederick Quinn

Frederick opened his eyes slowly. That sleeping drug had really taken him by surprise. Frederick should have been more careful. He'd remember that next time.

"Oi! Wake up Quinn!" came a voice from the doorway of the small room he was located in. As his senses quickly returned, he found himself handcuffed to a wooden chair and a table in front of him. Frederick Quinn found himself in the usual kind of interrogation room, grey walls, grey floor, two chairs and a table.

Kenneth sat down in front of Frederick with a smile, "You know Quinn, torture doesn't work. Any man will say whatever he can to get you to stop. So why don't we do this civilly? Why were you and your agent friend here snooping?"

Frederick tried to form words in his mouth, but for the first time in a long time, his mind was so muddled he couldn't think of a cover story. Getting caught wasn't his and Claude's plan. It was a quick reconnaissance mission. But they saw something that had to have been dealt with immediately. Nuclear triggers in enemy hands were not a good thing. They trusted the Director to forgive them.

_Damn sleeping drugs._

"Frederick Quinn, answer me now or it'll be worse off for your friend," Kenneth said, an edge in his voice.

"The Director wanted us to see who had taken up residence in this base. The Director doesn't take kindly to people using Ylisse's military bases without permission," Frederick said in partial honesty. He had to busy Kenneth long enough to escape and find Claude.

Kenneth stared at him for a long moment, then said, "Fair enough."

Frederick couldn't believe his luck! Had Kenneth believed him? Just in case, Frederick managed to get the lockpick out of the secret compartment in his watch and began picking the lock on the handcuffs. Silly Kenneth, you're supposed to take the watch off the agent's hand. That's where the gadgets always are.

"But…" Kenneth began with a condescending smile. Frederick swore silently as the man continued, "Why would that involve  _two_  agents?"

"Because…" Frederick said, stalling for time.

_Click!_

_Finally!_

Frederick jumped up, one arm free from his restraints. Frederick grabbed the chair he had been sitting in and swung it at Kenneth in a fluid motion.

The man was too startled to dodge and it broke into pieces as it collided with his midsection. Kenneth fell to the ground in pain. Grabbing the chair Kenneth had been sitting in, Frederick set the man in that chair forcefully. He pushed the man's head upright.

Frederick checked his watch and smiled, "Good. I've got time."

"For what?" Kenneth said weakly.

"To test your theory," Frederick began advancing on Kenneth with a slight smile.

"Theory?" the man said, still dazed.

"Torture doesn't work."

* * *

Knowing where Claude was being held, Frederick left the room with caution. He and Claude had seen several guards before getting captured.

Frederick ran silently down the long, vacant hallways, encountering none until he came upon the place where Claude was being held. There was only one way into the cell, past the guards. Having been imprisoned in one of these cells as part of training had taught Frederick well. They were like a typical prison cell, though every bar was reinforced with something that Frederick had never cared to learn about.

Two men stood guard. There were about Frederick's height, and by their stance Frederick recognized them as ex-HBI (Halidom Bureau of Investigation). Though due to their lack of attention, Fredrick determined they weren't the top notch quality he was used to.

_Fun._

Frederick sprung from behind the corner and threw a punch at the closer guard. Frederick felt his fist collide with the man's stomach, making him involuntarily lurch forward. The second guard began to react, missing his face and punching Frederick in his left shoulder.

Frederick's SHEPHERD training took over as he reached out a leg and pulled it towards him, tripping the second goon. The first one had recovered from Frederick's attack when the SHEPHERD struck him in the solar plexus with another punch, this time sending him to the ground, wheezing for air.

Frederick kicked the man he'd tripped in the face and jumped up, his elbow pointing down. His attack connected when his elbow hit the wheezing man in the ribs, shattering at least five of his ribs, judging from the screams and snaps.

The SHEPHERD was suddenly hit in the back of the head with the remaining goon's fist. Quickly shaking it off, he turned about with a roundhouse kick, slamming the goon into the wall, cracking his skull.

Frederick breathed heavily as he looked at his work, his adrenaline starting to wear off.

Claude stood up in his cell and clapped, "It's easier to appreciate your skill when I'm watching and not participating. I pray to Naga that we sabotaged that nuclear trigger successfully?"

Frederick nodded, "We disabled it. Permanently. The few people that could even hope to repair it are in SHEPHERD or the HBI. All is good." Realizing there was dust from his earlier scuffle on his shoulder, Frederick quickly wiped it off like it was never there.

Frederick searched the men, finding the keys on the man with broken ribs, he unlocked the door to Claude's cell.

"As for the initial mission?" Claude asked as he walked out.

"The fuse is set, the detonator is placed. Light the fuse," Frederick held out the trigger to Claude.

The holy man chuckled and clicked the button, "We better get running."

* * *

Ylissean Royal Castle: Lissa's Room  
Lissa Caverly

Lissa yawned as she clicked out of the card game she was playing on her laptop. The laptop had been a present for her fifteenth birthday, and she was an expert with it and all other computers.

She felt her hand drift across the winking smiley face on the top of her laptop and Lissa smiled, remembering when she put it on there.

There was a knock at the door. Lissa sat up from her swivel chair and brushed the wrinkles out of her pants she was wearing. A Princess' appearance was crucial as she was always reminded.

Her older sister, and Queen of Ylisse walked in. Emmeryn had the grace she didn't, it showed in her stride constantly, but it made Lissa look up to her even more.

"There's someone here to see you," Emmeryn Caverly said.

Lissa nodded and walked out of the door Emmeryn had open for her. Lissa's older sister led her to the smaller of the several meeting rooms in the castle. Smiling, Emmeryn excused herself since she had matters to attend to. Lissa opened the door and walked in.

Inside was a man with bright green hair and behind him a man that must have been his bodyguard. Said bodyguard wore a suit and so did the green haired man. He bowed to the Princess as she walked in, "Ms. Caverly, it is a pleasure to meet you formally."

Lissa recognized him from his visits to the castle before, "You're…Stefan?"

Stefan nodded and extended his hand, "I am Stefan Gerrard, Director of the YIA, or more commonly known as SHEPHERD."

Lissa's eyes widened,  _this_ was the Director of one of the best intelligence agencies in the world? Ylisse had two intelligence agencies. HBI for internal affairs and SHEPHERD, or YIA as it was also known as, for external and internal.

Stefan wasn't paying attention to her at the moment, "Volug, briefcase."

The wolfish man behind him handed Stefan the briefcase, who set it on the table and opened it. "Lissa Caverly, three days ago our agency was hacked, did you know that?" He gave her a sideways look.

Lissa's eyes widened, "N-no sir."

Stefan glanced at her as he took some papers out of the case, "Every picture of our agents were replaced by smiley faces and every logo of SHEPHERD was replaced by a unicorn, tell me, do you know how this could happen?"

Lissa shook her head and Stefan continued while looking her in the eyes, "We traced the computer back to this castle. To your room specifically. So Ms. Caverly, are you telling the truth?"

Lissa had never been more frightened in her nineteen years of her life. One of the most dangerous men in the world was here for  _her?_ Was there anything she could even do? It had been a joke, she didn't think they'd actually  _do_ something.

"Are…are you going to arrest me?" she said in a small voice.

Stefan laughed and even Volug gave a snicker, "Ms. Caverly, I'm not here to arrest you. I'm here to hire you!"

Lissa blinked, "W-what?"

Stefan kept laughing, "Not many can hack our servers in SHEPHERD. And someone as young as yourself is truly amazing. I'm offering you a career as a YIA Agent, or as some like to call it, I'm making you a SHEPHERD if you want it."

Lissa slowly asked, "It can't be that simple, can it?"

Stefan hesitated, and shook his head, "Nope, it's not. Your old life will never be the same. It may even cease to exist. If you take this job, you will have to commit yourself to the agency. We're the best for a reason. But if it makes you feel better, you'll save the world. That's for certain. And the team we're going to put you with will have a small failure rate. You'll be in little danger of dying."

"What exactly would I do?" Lissa asked curiously.

Stefan ran a hand through his hair, "Well, you'd be using very high tech equipment to hack into various security systems and other computers. You might do some grifting-"

"Grifting?"

"Yeah, the art of conning someone. To grift is to… fool someone. Convincing you I'm someone else through acting is grifting. You'll learn as you go along. Trust me," Stefan smirked. "But if you enjoy hacking, you'll enjoy the job."

Lissa sat quietly for a long time, thinking on her choice. Stefan leaned over, "I know I'm biased and you may think I'm trying to manipulate you, but hear me out. The life you have here, you'll never escape it. Once a royal, always a royal. This is your chance to feel free and alive. Serving your country, it's what you're supposed to do as a Princess anyway. It'll be scary, and you may regret the decision a few times, but the people you meet…they'll be the best people you'll ever meet. And saving the world has a very nice feel to it." Stefan grinned.

Lissa opened her mouth, then closed it. A few seconds later, she said, "Yes."

Stefan smiled widely, "Welcome to SHEPHERD, Agent Lissa." He held out his hand for her to shake.

Lissa shook his hand, giving him a firm handshake.

_I am not delicate. I'm going to save the world!_

* * *

The Ylissean Police Department  
Stahl Donivore

Detective Inspector Stahl stood up from his chair in his office. Pushing open the doors, he walked into the busy main room of the YPD. The Ylissean Police Department was home to one of the biggest police forces in any country. So the result was dozens of men and women running back and forth, telephones ringing and constant chatter. Desks everywhere trying to accommodate every officer. Each desk littered with papers and the like.

A usual police department.

Stahl wasn't the head of the YPD, but he certainly was up in the rankings. In fact, he had been chosen to lead a special group of detectives and take on the darker crimes of the city. There was one wrinkle, but Stahl figured he could manage it when the time came. He wasn't high up in the department for nothing.

DI Stahl headed to the conference room with his usual gait and no hurriedness. He and the other members of his team were gathering to see the final day of the trial of the man who had shot their friend Leila Gryfflet as they had the past two days of the trial. The others were worried the defendant would get off.

Stahl wasn't worried, he knew Prosecutor Chandler personally. It was Stahl who asked Virion to take up the case. Chandler owed him a favor or two anyway.

The detective twisted the door handle of the conference room and walked inside. He strode forward and took his usual seat at the head of the table facing the huge TV on the wall.

To his right sat Heather Starr, who had recently passed her training to become a detective. Heather was enrapt with the trial, barely flirting with Mia. And to his left sat Mia Meridas, a detective in training that Stahl had bent some rules so she could join the team, even though she wasn't a full detective. But the purple haired woman had tons of potential.

Missing from the table were Matthew and Leila. The latter was still in the hospital for gunshot wounds and the former was visiting her, since that was the usual job of a boyfriend. Matthew hadn't been around at all ever since Leila had been shot.

And then they had a new person coming in today. The wrinkle Stahl had to deal with, for he wasn't a detective. He was an agent of the HBI. And Stahl had no idea what to do with him.

Stahl sighed and watch the trial as Virion began summarizing the case. People all over the city were watching the fate of Dew Thompson probably much like Heather.

"This isn't looking good boss," Mia said. Even if she hadn't worked with everyone for as long as the others had known each other, she still cared about Leila a lot. It was one of the things that would make her a great detective.

"Hey, have a little faith Mia. Stahl says this Virion's good. He'll find Leila's killer," Heather said with certainty. Stahl nodded approvingly.

"Have any of you seen Matthew? Is he still visiting Leila?" Stahl asked Heather.

"He was in earlier to pick up some things, but he left quickly. So I assume he's going to be there for a while," Heather said. "Chandler better get the killer," she muttered darkly.

Reaching towards the center of the table where a muffin had been left for him, Stahl asked, "Who got these?"

"I did boss!" said Mia energetically.

Stahl nodded approvingly and swiftly gobbled down the muffin.

_Mmm…Blueberry._

Then there was a gunshot.

Stahl almost choked as he looked up at the TV to see DA Dawson shoot Prosecutor Chandler.

"What the hell!?" yelled Heather as she fell out of her chair. Her feet had been resting on the table as she watched. Trying to jump up in that position was not a good idea.

Mia only gasped and looked at Stahl for an explanation. Stahl didn't have one. This came completely out of nowhere! Virion Chandler, dead?!

"Look!" Heather said from the floor amidst several swear words, pointing towards the corner of the TV screen. Stahl stared at the corner to see Virion slowly getting up and brushing the wrinkles out of his fancy shirt.

The three watched, stunned with surprise as Virion stood up, apparently unharmed and shot DA Dawson.

The film cut to the news anchors and the three detectives looked at each other. There was a knock at the door.

Mia got up to open it, still bewildered from the event of a few seconds ago. Twisting the handle slowly, she pulled the door open.

A man with a scar down his face walked in, "Which one of you is Donivore?"

Stahl swung his chair around and stood up, "That's me. Who're you?" Stahl sized him up and came to the conclusion that this could be only one person.

The man reached into the inner pocket of his suit and pulled out a badge, "Agent Adair, HBI."

"Who is this guy?" Heather asked bluntly. She was giving him the Heather death stare. Detective Heather wasn't a big fan of men. It had taken her a long time to warm up to Stahl.

"Legault Adair, I'm the new member of your team here," Legault said, smirking.

"Boss?" Mia asked.

Stahl nodded, "Our team is an experiment. We're going to see how a diverse group of detectives and HBI agents cooperate."

_No telling if it'll work. At least there's only one HBI agent the agency had to spare._

"We'll be stopping crime with the help of two agencies to see if it's more effective," Legault said.

Stahl unconsciously felt for one of his badges in his pocket, his detective badge. He kept the other one away. Bad memories. And food made bad memories go away, "Indeed, now there's no better time to start then the present. Mia, are there any more of those muffins left?"

* * *

Annamart  
Gaius Faraday

Gaius popped the piece of candy into his mouth as he swung open the door into the shop. Anna Cassidy had been his friend since childhood. And now they ran a shop together.

All members of Anna's look-alike family ran some form of store. Anna Cassidy had a pawnshop. It was a very nice pawnshop, easy access to the street, an optimal location and the two of them both lived above the store in the second floor that they had turned into a place of living. And with their other jobs, they were able to afford it.

"Uncle G! About time you got back!" Morgan shouted to him from across the store. It was a slow day, she didn't have any customers to tend to. Morgan was their assistant as well as Gaius' apprentice in the art of thievery.

Morgan had found her way to the two friends seven years ago, at the end of the war. Near the end, she turned up looking for her mother. Morgan had thought Anna was her mother at first. Which was expected, but Morgan couldn't remember anything else except her mother. Gaius personally thought Morgan had had some sort of traumatic experience that led to her memory loss. She was Anna's niece, so to her that made Gaius her uncle even though the two weren't married.

"Having fun taking my place?" he said, laughing as he set down the groceries he'd just gotten.

Morgan rolled her eyes and stood up and gave him a hug. He hugged her back, "Any customers?" He ruffled her hair. She hated that.

They separated and she shrugged, "One or two, they didn't buy anything."

Gaius smirked, "Too bad. And Morgan, I'll be needing my wallet back."

Morgan smirked and handed his wallet back to him, "I can't help it if I compulsively steal Uncle. You know me."

"That's okay. You want your wallet back?" It was Gaius' turn to smirk as he held up the wallet that he'd lifted from her. Morgan furiously checked her pockets.

"How did you…!" Morgan said, outraged.

Gaius laughed, "You got miles to go yet kid. But you're learning from the best." He threw the wallet to her with a trademark smirk and she tucked it in her pocket again. Her hand hovering protectively around her pocket did not go unnoticed by Gaius.

Morgan sat back in the chair she was sitting in before Gaius entered and went back to the TV she was watching.

"Where's Red?" Gaius said, using one the many nicknames he had for the people he cared for. Though unlike others, hers was obvious.

"On a job," Morgan said vaguely. "Someone came by and asked for her help quickly."

Gaius nodded. Both he and Anna were con artists, accomplished thieves and grifters respectively. And they were both training Morgan in their respective strengths, Gaius with thievery and Anna with grifting. Though Morgan was a natural thief. Someone who compulsively steals can really only do one thing in life.

"Is that the trial?" Gaius asked, nodding toward the TV. It was all anyone was watching these past few days. Even Gaius was caught watching it occasionally.

Morgan nodded, "I don't know about this Virion Chandler, he doesn't seem very good."

Gaius shrugged, "He's trying to fool Dawson. Letting her lower her guard. I know how Virion works, I've worked with him before." Gaius felt obligated to defend the man he'd known for a long time. But Morgan didn't know that.

"On a job?"

"You could say that."

"And who's this Renault Robespierre they keep mentioning along with his name?" the redheaded girl asked.

"He's a famous prosecutor, one of the best. Virion's his student," Gaius answered.

Morgan nodded and went back to watching the TV.

The bell on the door jingled and Gaius walked toward the noise. A tall man with blue hair walked through, his usual smile on his face, "Gaius! How's it been?"

The thief's eyes widened, "P! Long time no see!"

Priam laughed, "It has been a while, one or two years or something?"

"The good ol' days," Gaius said with a smirk. Priam had been a member of  _the_ team from seven years ago.

"Well, I've been…ah, taking a nap for a long time," Priam said, slipping into the slang SHEPHERDs used. Priam was a Sleeper Agent, a man who only sprung from his deep cover when commanded. So most of the time he had was spent doing nothing related to the YIA.

"Has it been restful?" Gaius asked with a knowing smile.

Priam laughed, but suddenly looked serious and spoke in a low voice, "They want you back, my friend. Things're getting bad. Not even this old warrior or Stef can do everything."

Gaius' happy attitude soured, "P, I'm done. I left the life. Green can handle it all."

Priam just sighed, "I knew you'd say that."

Gaius changed topics at lightning speed, "What brings you here?"

"I just wanted to pawn this ring, I need some money," Priam gestured to a ring on his finger.

Gaius frowned, "No. I'm not letting you give up on her." That was Priam's wedding ring, his wife had left him several years ago. Working in the field was very hard on relationships, that's why only relationships between fellow agents seemed to work out.

Priam's radiant posture dimmed considerably, "She's…not coming back. There's no point in waiting."

"I know while you're taking a nap, you can't get money from the YIA to avoid suspicion, take this," Gaius reached into his wallet and pulled out a one thousand gold bill. Carrying around one thousand gold pieces became troublesome so the world solved the problem with the creation of paper money along with gold pieces. Only Annas had large quantities of gold pieces anymore.

"I can't-" began Priam.

"Take it. I'm not letting you suffer out there for them P. Let me know if you ever need help again. Keep the ring, and keep waiting for her. She'll be back, I know it," Gaius commanded.

Priam paused, then nodded and accepted the money, "Try to stay out of trouble Gaius. Though I know trouble always finds you no matter what."

Priam left through the door he came through. Gaius walked back over to Morgan, deep in thought.

"Anything interesting happen?" Gaius said distractedly, though his lack of cheer went unnoticed by Morgan.

"Chandler was shot by Dawson, and he shot her back. Now I see why so many people watch these trials," Morgan said.

"Are you joking?" Gaius asked, slightly more alert. Then the phone rang, cutting him off any follow up. Muting the TV with the remote and abandoning all prior thoughts, he set the phone on speaker and answered it.

"This is the Annamart, you pawn it we sell it, how can I help you?" Gaius said the usual phrase.

" _Good afternoon, I'm calling to inform you that you have just won an all-expenses paid trip to Chon'sin-"_

The man on the phone never finished as Gaius quickly hung up the phone. Morgan gave him a strange look, then unmuted the TV.

_Damn them. Damn the agency. I left the life, I'm done._

"I'm going for a walk Morgan, let Red know where I am," Gaius said, throwing his green sweatshirt on and putting his headband on straight. He'd said he would never go back when he left a little more than a year ago. And he never intended to.

The orange haired man walked out of the shop, attempting to outrun his past.

* * *

He'd been walking and thinking for several hours. Gaius knew there was no way to way to get SHEPHERD to stop asking after him unless he had a hold over them. And blackmail against the Director was a bad idea. Plus the Director was his friend. Green wasn't someone to cross either.

Gaius was so preoccupied in his thoughts he didn't hear a car approach and follow him for a short while. By the time he turned around and noticed it, it pulled up alongside of him and opened the door. A man from within the car spoke, "Step into the car, agent. That's an order."

Swearing under his breath, Gaius stepped into the SHEPHERD car. Inside was a man Gaius had gotten to know well, Henry Talbot as well as another familiar face, Cordelia Shaw. And Gaius was not happy to see them.

"Crivens! What'll it take for you and the others to leave me alone?" Gaius said angrily. They'd left him alone for so long, why now?

"Nyah ha ha! Good to see you too buddy!" Henry said with his trademark smile. Well that hadn't changed.

"Hello Gaius, long time no see," Cordelia said while flipping through a file folder. And neither had the workaholic.

"I have nothing to say. I quit, I'm done. Stop following me and calling," the thief said, quite irked.

"You were one of our best agents. We need you," Cordelia looked him in the eye.

"Big things are going on in the covert world. Big things with lots of blood," Henry said dreamily.

"What kind of big things?" Gaius said despite his anger.

"We've gotten whispers that  _he's_  out there. And if those whispers are true, then he is responsible for the embassy bombing a few months back," Cordelia said. "And that means you and the others never actually got him."

Gaius' felt his face grow pale. Three months ago, the Ylissean embassy in Plegia was bombed. The tensions between the two countries were higher than they had been in years. And if it truly was  _him_ …

"We need you back to stop him. You know his style, he's going to have an endgame planned. You are the only one who is in any position to stop him, besides the Director of course," Cordelia said. "And he's a bit too busy with keeping the world together."

Gaius was silent for a long time. He knew the risks of being in the intelligence community. It would bring danger to Anna and Morgan.

Then the thief had an idea. Probably a bad one, but this was something that needed to be done.

"I'll agree to come back, under a few conditions though," Gaius said slowly.

"Nyah ha ha! Fair enough," Henry said.

"I get to pick my own team," Gaius said.

Cordelia nodded, "But we already have a Hacker for you. Director's orders."

Gaius nodded, "Fine. And I pick the missions. You can present me with them, but I decide whether my team does 'em."

Both of them looked uncertain, but hesitantly nodded. "Is that all?" Henry asked. Gaius thought he sounded hopeful.

"I want to use the hideout my teams always used, and I want to take the team I pick on one of my cons. I need to see how they think, act and work together before doing anything large scale," Gaius said. His role in the YIA was being a Mastermind, he was the man who planned each mission, the one who gave the orders and every other little task that popped was his to deal with as well. Booking plane tickets, finding local YIA safehouses, etc. He used to have the role as the Thief, but Green had taught him well.

"That can be arranged," nodded Henry.

Cordelia handed Gaius a laptop, "Pick those you want on your team."

Gaius took the laptop (after putting a piece of candy in his mouth) and looked through his options. "Who's my Hacker?" he asked. Gaius wanted something to work with.

"Lissa Caverly," Henry chuckled.

"Crivens, wasn't expecting that," muttered Gaius. "What about Erk? I'd rather have him. Best Hacker I've met."

Henry's chuckling ceased for once, "Erk was killed in the embassy explosion."

"Shit," said Gaius. "He was a good man. He didn't deserve to brought down by the man we'd thought we'd taken care of. …I'll take Frederick as my Hitter…and Virion as my Observer of course. And since I'll be the Mastermind, that leaves two more. I already have my Grifter and Thief, they're fellow con artists however."

"Who are they?" Cordelia asked sternly. "We can't let you use non-agents without a background check. Though we probably shouldn't let you use them at all"

"Anna Cassidy and Morgan Cassidy," Gaius said. "Are we done? I hate these cars. Too small."

Henry nodded, "We'll contact you in a few days."

"I'm looking forward to it," Gaius said sarcastically. The thief jumped out of the car and got away from it as fast as he could.

* * *

Unknown Location  
?

It had been three months since he'd bombed the embassy. Knowing SHEPHERD, they'd be after him within a month or so. There wasn't much time to waste, but he wasn't about to smudge the Sterling name by rushing his plan.

"What do you want?" the man said in a bored tone.

The fat man in front of him cleared his throat, "I will deliver you the goods and you will put them to use. Any profits made out of this deal will be split fifty-fifty."

"I don't like your tone, Oliver," the man said. Sterling folded his hands in front of his chin emotionlessly.

"What do you mean, Mr. Sterling?" Oliver said. The fat man disgusted Sterling.

"I mean fifty-fifty isn't going to cut it. Twenty-eighty," Sterling took a drink from his mug of tea.

"That's absurd!"

"Tharja!" shouted Mr. Sterling.

Oliver suddenly felt something sharp poke into his back. He took a sharp intake of breath as he saw a dark haired woman standing next to him.

"Thank you Tharja, do you mind finding Ishtar for me? I have new orders for her," Sterling said lightly.

He refocused his attention on the fat man. "Now Oliver, you had best get your sorry ass out of here. And take the twenty-eighty deal, it's me being generous," Mr. Sterling. "And do remember the most important rule when dealing with me."

"What is that?" Oliver said in a small voice.

Mr. Sterling grinned, "That my name is Robin Sterling. Now get out."


	2. The Solution to the Problem: Part I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Colby Arturian is character that appears in every FE fanfic I do. He is the only character that isn't an FE character in this fic.

Job #1: The Solution to the Problem

Part I

Annamart   
Anna Cassidy

Anna yawned as she flipped the 'Open' sign to 'Closed' on the front door of her store. She was tired today, the con she had been recruited for took longer than she thought. Posing as a famous noble in order to steal a painting took a lot of work. And a lot of disguise. Being an Anna had its perks, but it had downfalls as well. Posing as an interested business party? Easy. Posing as a noble? Not so much.

Morgan had said Gaius had gone out for a walk…and he still wasn't back. It worried her a bit. Anna knew she shouldn't worry, her best friend had been a secret agent after all. And if they were anything like they were in movies, then he'd be okay.

Feeling reassured, Anna took a glance at the computer screen in front of her. She hadn't made much profit at all today, and that made her sad. Though the fresh five thousand gold note from the con raised her spirits somewhat. Some of her sisters frowned upon the art of conning, and some of her sisters encouraged it.

Anna heard the door open and she saw Gaius walk through looking very tired. He grinned none the less using his nickname for her, "Howdy Red."

"Where have you been?" Anna said with eyebrows raised. He didn't go take walks. He usually just ate candy.

"Getting ready," he shrugged and took a seat next to her behind the counter of the store. Gaius looked worn out, and not physically.

"For…?" Anna put a finger on her chin habitually.

"I've been recruited. Agent Gaius, reporting for duty. Back to being a SHEPHERD," Gaius chuckled weakly. Though he didn't seem altogether happy.

Anna was silent for a moment, then, "I thought you said being an agent would put me and Morgan in danger?"

What fake cheerfulness Gaius had had disappeared, "Well…it's going to get very dangerous in the world soon. There's someone…no, I can't talk about that now. But soon nowhere will be safe. So I used the Grifter and Thief spots in the team for you two." He tried to smirk.

"…What."

Gaius took a deep breath, "You two are now agents. Huzzah?"

"I've always wanted to be a secret agent," Morgan exclaimed.

Gaius jumped up very startled. He went from sitting down to his feet in less than an instant. The thief scanned the room very quickly, "Where…?"

Morgan laughed and poked her head out from behind a book case, "You two don't look hard enough for eavesdroppers."

"Dammit," Gaius swore. "I need to be more careful. You could have been an assassin in some other situation." Anna was about to chuckle, but she saw the seriousness on Gaius' face and didn't.

"Back to the part about us being secret agents…?" Anna said with a neutral expression.

"It'll be like our cons, but on a, uh, slightly larger scale?" Gaius said with an attempt to diffuse the tension.

Anna didn't say anything. Gaius continued, "I made the agency agree to let me run a con with the team I created. If you hate it, just tell me and you won't have to continue."

"C'mon Aunt Anna?" Morgan asked. Well, begged was a better term.

"Morgan, don't call me aunt. It makes me feel old," Anna sighed. It could be an interesting profit opportunity. "And fine, I'll go along with this for now as long as I get paid. But I thought you hated it? Why are you back with them?"

"Well…let's just say…unfinished business," Gaius said evasively. He looked at the ground for a long moment, then he grinned, "I'll show you around the agency tomorrow. There are some things I need to pick up."

"They let you just show anyone the top secret SHEPHERD facility?" Morgan said eagerly. Anna couldn't help but smile slightly.

"They let me. I'm a very important person," Gaius grinned, his usual cockiness regained. Though this time Anna thought it might have been the truth.

* * *

Annamart   
Morgan Cassidy   
_The next day…_

Morgan hated mornings. They were always cold, and the bright sun wasn't even warm yet. Honestly, no one liked mornings. Nobody at all in their right mind enjoyed the morning.

But today Morgan was going to see the headquarters of the YIA, the most famous secret agency in the world! Every little kid dreamt of being a cool secret agent. Morgan was one of those few who held onto that dream longer than most.

And now it was coming true.

She could hardly contain her excitement during the car ride. Gaius was driving. He always did, as he claimed to have taken the 'Tactical Driving Course' in his training. She never really believed it, but now…knowing that her Uncle G was a secret agent, it made a lot more sense. Morgan still couldn't believe Uncle G was part of the YIA!

Gaius parked Anna's bright red car on the edge of Ylisstol. It was an area that was formed more like a small town rather than the edge of one of the most populace cities in the world. Gesturing for them to get out, he walked into a plumbing store that was adjacent to the car he'd just parked. Morgan followed him, puzzled.

Upon entering the store, Gaius walked right up to the blue haired woman at the desk, "Howdy cupcake."

The woman looked up from what she was doing, "Well, I'll be damned." She brushed her blue hair out of her face, "Mr. Faraday is back. Wasn't expecting to ever see you again."

"Farina, you know as well as I do that I'd eventually be back," Gaius sighed with annoyance in his voice. But he immediately perked up, "Do you have any of those nifty guns you had for me a year ago?"

Farina nodded with a smirk, "But it'll still cost you. Custom guns aren't cheap. And ever since you pulled me into the agency, money hasn't been coming in like it used to."

Gaius snorted and gestured to the store's contents behind him, "You could have changed the store to something other than plumbing. Green wouldn't have killed you. He thinks plumbing is rather boring."

Farina rolled her eyes, "Changing it randomly would be suspicious, and you know it. And what else would I sell? I can't sell my guns in a store this big."

Gaius nodded as Farina turned towards Anna, "Ah! An Anna!" She held out her hand for Anna to shake, "I'm Farina Dale, I really admire the set up your family has. You must make sooooo much money!"

Anna shook her hand and blushed a bit, "Um, thanks?"

Farina laughed, "We'll skip the formalities Faraday. You know the way." She pointed toward the back of the store and clicked a button under her desk. Morgan heard a soft  _beep._

Gaius winked at her and motioned for the two redheads to follow him.

"Who was that?" Morgan asked.

"Farina Dale, an arms dealer. She was being hunted by someone a few years ago and I brought her in. Now she works for SHEPHERD," Gaius said as he came to a plain brown door in the back of the store. "Welcome to the YIA," he put his hand on the doorknob with a wide grin on his face.

"Er…what?" Anna said. Morgan silently agreed.

"Honestly, would you look for this place in a plumbing store? No, you wouldn't," Gaius flashed a smile at the two of them and popped a sucker into his mouth. He adjusted his headband so it was straight how he liked it. "You'll catch onto things like this. The Director is pretty big on inconspicuous."

The thief flung the door open to reveal a small room. Only one thing was in it, a strange sort of scanner on the wall. "Retinal scanner. Finger prints are easy to fake. Eyes are much harder," Gaius explained as he put his face up to it.

There was a faint noise, and a beep. To their left a door opened, well, more like two walls slid apart to reveal the way.

Morgan's eyes widened. She saw a large room, illuminated by many lights. The entire floor was either glass or some transparent material and the stairs that led up to the second level were of the same make. There were several people milling about doing whatever they were supposed to do, but it wasn't crowded. On the second level there were many doors with names written on them. Agents' offices, Morgan supposed.

A few desks littered the main entry way with computers and all sorts of high tech equipment that Morgan had no clue what they were for. A few people looked up to see who walked in, but they didn't pay them any more than a glance.

All in all, it was exactly the kind of thing Morgan pictured when she thought 'Secret Agent Base.'

Suddenly one of the doors flung open on the second floor. A giant man walked out, he was bald with bulging muscles and a dangerous face. A green haired man walked out behind him.

"We're handling it the best we can! I don't see you trying to help!" shouted the green haired man more than a little annoyed.

"The World Intelligence Agency has many things to take care of. Sterling is your problem," said the big man in a deep voice.

"Arturian, we should be helping each other. YIA and WIA together. We can catch him if we work together!" growled the other man.

"Gerrard, do your job," said Arturian. The giant man walked toward the three con artists presumably for the door.

Gaius jumped out of the way and to Morgan's surprise, snapped into a formal salute. "Hello sir, long time no see."

Arturian turned, "Faraday? Well, I guess Stefan does have the best on the case. Fix the problem quick."

"Will do sir!" Gaius said. And the big man continued on his way.

_That was certainly out of character for Uncle G._

The giant man left and the green haired man walked down the stairs, "Ah! Gaius, I'm glad you're here. Henry and Cordelia told me the good news."

"Green, I'm only here to finish what we started. After that, I'm done. For good. And… oh right," Gaius turned toward his companions. "Anna, Morgan, this is Stefan Gerrard. He's the Director of the YIA. Green, I've told you about these two."

"How do you do?" Stefan said warmly.

Morgan decided she liked him and extended her hand for him to shake. Stefan smirked as he shook her hand, "You certainly raised a polite kid, Faraday. She's got a good handshake."

"She's not my kid…not exactly," Gaius mumbled and Stefan laughed.

"I suppose it goes without saying, but I should make this clear anyway," Stefan said. "You two know where this agency is now. If you tell anyone, we will find out and be forced to kill you." Stefan smiled apologetically, "Sorry, it's protocol."

Morgan's smile slid from her face and Anna muttered, "How fun." Gaius however, laughed.

The Director turned to Gaius, "The Hideout is ready. And your office is unlocked. Have fun. I've got to keep running around and directing." Stefan gave a wave and hurried off to somewhere else.

"Follow me," Gaius instructed and led them up the stairs. They walked a short ways down a hallway until they got to a door that had a metal plaque reading 'Gaius.' It was dusty.

Gaius glared at it and wiped the dust away, then opened the door and walked in. Morgan and Anna followed and looked around at Gaius' small office. There wasn't anything at all except a desk with a computer on it and one framed picture on the wall.

And of course, that was the first thing Morgan looked at. It was six people sitting on a car that was riddled with bullet holes. They were all smiling like idiots. She picked out Gaius with a sucker in his mouth more towards the back. Right in the front was the man she'd just met, Stefan. Next to him was the huge bald man that had Gaius' respect. And finally there was an Anna, someone she didn't know, and Prosecutor Virion.

_What?_

"That picture brings back memories," Gaius said, looking at it nostalgically. The picture was covered with dust as well. This time, Gaius gently cleaned it off with his sweatshirt sleave.

Morgan looked at him with a look that demanded an explanation. Gaius gave her a wry smile, "Us six were the ones who ended the war seven years ago. Me, Ruffles, Green, Erk, Colby and Anna. Not your aunt," he chuckled.

"You  _ended_  the war seven years ago?" Morgan asked, wide eyed. That war was all anyone talked about these days. Especially seeing as it might get rekindled soon.

"That's confidential, squirt. Anywho, I got what I came here for," Gaius held up the computer. "Let's go."

Anna spoke up, "So that's what you were doing when you left?"

Gaius paused, "I left you eight years ago because I was recruited into the YIA. I couldn't tell you about it at the time, especially not the mission I was on. And once again, I apologize."

"We were friends Gaius. We'd been friends since we learned how to walk as kids. You could've told me," Ana said, slightly hurt.

"I wanted to Anna. I really did. But we were in a race against time and Green forbade me. But this time, we're at each other's sides. No need for lies or disappearances," Gaius walked over and gave Anna a hug.

Anna hugged him back and nodded, though Morgan couldn't quite read her expression. But it certainly looked like she was enjoying the hug.

* * *

YIA Plumbing Store   
Gaius Faraday

"Thanks Farina," Gaius said, putting the gun in its harness under his sweatshirt. The thief gave it an experimental secret agent 'Pull The Gun Out Of The Holster Quickly.'

"You be careful out there Faraday," Farina said with a slight grin. Then after a moment, "I wouldn't want to lose your business."

Laughing Gaius said, "I'll see you later, cupcake." And he walked out of the store. Ready to fight crime.

* * *

The Hideout   
Gaius Faraday

The thief put the car in park. Gaius looked out of the red car at the small house. This was the place he always had his teams meet for planning.

It was a brick house on the edge of town. It had a nice green lawn with a wrought iron fence around its yard. It was the kind of house that was right next to the road and had moss and vines growing on the walls. The garage next to the house had three cars in the driveway. Anna's red car, a car Gaius recognized as Virion's and their black standard issue SHEPHERD van.

"What is this place?" Anna asked.

"Our Hideout. A SHEPHERD safehouse. Ready to meet the other members of the team?" Gaius began walking toward the door. He loved this house, many great memories.

The three walked in.

It was a modest house, the furniture was nothing fancy. And frankly, there wasn't anything that made it look like a YIA house. And that was the point. Well, there was the basement, but no one knew about that.

Except for the fact that there was a huge TV screen on the wall. Facing the screen were six bar stools, all connected like in an actual bar, table and all. Perfect for people to sit at and watch the screen, papers and such scattered about.

"Welcome to the Hideout," said a familiar voice.

Gaius turned his attention to Virion Chandler, who was sitting at one of the stools grinning, "Look whose back in the business. Long time no see Gaius! I have missed wooing the women without you!"

"You know I never flirted with any of your women you found. And nice trial earlier Ruffles," Gaius grinned.

Virion looked behind Gaius to see Morgan and Anna, "Ah, newcomers? Exquisite, we better hurry on with introductions then."

Gaius nodded and noticed for the first time Frederick Quinn and Lissa Caverly. The former was sitting as stoically as always and the latter was sitting nervously. "I think it'd be good if we all introduced ourselves, don't you think?" Gaius said. "I'll go first, my name is Gaius and I'm the Mastermind. I like candy and my favorite color is purple."

Virion nodded and continued as if this was standard protocol, "My name is Virion, and I'm the Observer. I'm a prosecutor and my favorite color is the fabulous blue."

Frederick rolled his eyes and said in his surprisingly  _not_ monotone, "I am Frederick, the Retrieval Specialist."

There was silence.

Then, "What's your favorite color?" Gaius asked seriously as if the future depended on it.

Frederick paused, "Black."

Gaius nodded, "Red, your turn."

"My name is Anna, and I'm the Grifter. My favorite color is red, obviously," Anna chuckled nervously. Virion smiled for encouragement.

Morgan went ahead without waiting for Gaius' okay, "My name is Morgan, and I'm the Thief! My favorite color is red too."

"Are these colors even necessary?" Frederick mumbled, a little bit annoyed.

"Quiet Freddy Bear, it's Princess' turn," Gaius said.

"Freddy Bear…?" Frederick said, irritated. The one other time Gaius had worked with Frederick he called him that nickname. And Fredrick hated it.

"I'm Lissa, and I'm the…Hacker? Is that right?" Lissa asked shyly.

Gaius nodded encouragingly, "Favorite color?"

"Yellow," she shrugged.

"Well, there we go! I bet we'll all be sweet friends," Gaius clapped his hands. "Now for-"

"Mr. Faraday?" Lissa said questioningly.

"Hmm?" He focused his attention on her. She was wearing a suit that didn't really match her personality.

"What exactly do all these jobs entail? Like what does a Mastermind do? Or a Hacker?" Lissa asked curiously.

"Idiot!" Gaius exclaimed. Seeing the look on Lissa's face, he shook his head, "No, not you, me. I forgot you're completely new to this. Alright, let's explain the jobs then."

Gaius pointed to Virion, "He's the Observer. He keeps an eye on us while we work the job. He's our weapons specialist too and the guy who sits on the rooftops and shoot people. You've seen movies. But me and him are usually the two watching out for the rest of you."

Next Gaius pointed to Frederick, "Freddy Bear beats people up. He's the Hitter, or Retrieval Specialist as the role is formally known as. You call him when we need to save someone. But he's good at kicking ass and beating up guards at the facilities we break into."

Gaius pointed at Anna with a slight smile, "Red is our Grifter. She fools people for a living. On any given day, Red could fool you into thinking she was a Valmese Duchess if she wanted to. But Red is the one who gains the mark's trust and convinces them to do what we want through all sorts of methods like Neuro Linguistics Reprogramming and the like."

Lissa raised her hand, "The…mark?"

"The mark is the target of the job. The person we're trying to con or kill," Frederick interjected. Gaius shot him a brief look and resumed.

"Morgan is our Thief. She sneaks in and out of air vents and the like. Stealing things is her game. Or sabotage. Whatever stealthy arts are needed."

Gaius pointed to Lissa, "Then there's you. You, Princess, hack into where ever we are and assume control. You control the cameras and security systems so we can go and slip in without anyone noticing. If there are laser detectors, you shut 'em off. If there are guards coming for us, you let us know. And you monitor the communications channel we're using in case someone is using our frequency."

"And you?" Lissa asked.

"I'm the Mastermind," Gaius said with a smirk. "I plan everything. And it's my job to fill in the gaps with our team. You'll figure it out as we go. Trust me." He winked.

Lissa nodded and Gaius looked everyone in the eye, "So who is ready to take down Miriel Avarige, CEO of Solution? Our first mark and job is stopping a corrupt business. Who's ready?"

* * *

YPD Conference Room   
Stahl Donivore

Stahl yawned as he stared at the muffin in the middle of the table. He wanted to reach for it, but currently his laziness outweighed his hunger for once. Thus was the state of boredom.

"Is this all we do? Sit around?" Legault said, irritated. He had been shifting in his seat for a long time now. Stahl was surprised he hadn't asked sooner.

"It's called being on standby," Stahl said. "We are the 'elite team.' It's our job to tackle the tough cases. And at the moment there aren't any."

But truthfully, it was quite boring. There was nothing happening that warranted the need of Stahl's team. It was another boring and usual day. So they sat around and did nothing. Well, Heather, Mia and Matthew Brooks sat around playing poker. And again, like usual, Matthew was winning.

Leila wasn't well enough yet to come back to work, it'd probably be a while before she was. But Stahl was glad he at least had Matthew back with the team. Matthew would be back to his talkative self once Leila returned.

Stahl's cellphone began to ring. Sighing, he answered it with a boring, "Hello?"

" _Sir! We have a prisoner that has escaped!"_

Stahl blinked a few times and unconsciously sat up straighter, "…Say that again."

" _Detective Inspector, Sothe Walker escaped from the Ylisstol Prison!"_

"…Find him. I don't care what you have to do, find him!" Stahl shouted into the phone. He hung it up and looked at the startled members of the team. "We've got a job to do." Legault had a triumphant expression on and a slight smirk.

Stahl burst out of the room, the general area of the precinct was already a flurry of activity. But it quieted down when the police chief came out of his office. Stahl turned respectively towards his superior.

Gregor Marshall walked right over to Stahl and nodded to him, "Gregor thinks this is your case, yes? Gregor thinks DI Donivore should take charge. Good use of your team, Gregor thinks." No one knew where Gregor's accent came from. But that didn't take away from the police chief's command. His accent practically demanded attention.

Stahl nodded, then turned to the rest of the precinct, "I want everyone to scan the CCTV footage down to the smallest bit. We cannot let the YPD be known as the police department that let a prisoner escape. Especially Sothe Walker. When you find a lead, call me. You're looking for any car he stole, or Walker himself. You do not rest until we find him. Is that clear!?"

"Yes sir!" and with that the precinct erupted into activity.

Stahl turned to his posse, "Let's move out."

* * *

"So what are we looking for, boss?" Mia asked from the back seat of the police car. She had to talk very loudly over the siren.

Stahl pressed on the gas and spoke equally as loud, "Sothe Walker. Age 32, green hair and tall. Menacing looking. Known connections with Robin Sterling, YIA's most wanted. Essentially, he's a terrorist. Albeit he's not. But when someone has connections with Robin Sterling, they're treated with the same threat level as a terrorist. But it is imperative we catch him. Especially since he used to be a detective."

"What did he do to go to jail? He was part of the force?" Heather asked to the right of Stahl in the front seat. Matthew and Legault were in another car following Stahl. Heather had insisted on going with Stahl. The Detecitve wasn't very fond of men, and Stahl and Matthew were the only two she had come to trust. Legault was not one of those two.

Stahl spared a brief glance toward Heather, "Do you know who Robin Sterling is?"

Heather and Mia both shook their heads and Stahl sighed, "To keep it short, he started the war between Plegia, Ylisse and Ferox. He's the most dangerous man alive. Any affiliates with him are considered extremely dangerous, no matter their crime. Sothe Walker was found in contact with him. Bribery and something akin to Sothe transporting something for Sterling."

Stahl's phone rang and Heather picked it up, "Did you find him?" Heather spoke with a detective's assurance. Stahl was proud.

Heather listened to whoever was on the other side, then nodded and turned to Stahl, "CCTV just picked up Walker stealing a car. Follow my directions. And turn left."

Stahl nodded and spun the wheel to the left. "We'll find you, you son of a bitch," Stahl muttered quietly.

* * *

The Streets of Ylisstol   
Sothe Walker

Sothe sprung the lock on the car door. He glanced inconspicuously around and climbed in once he determined his safety. After a quick hotwiring of the car, Sothe began his escape.

Thankfully he had the foresight to mug that man on the way and steal his clothes. A prison uniform would be far too conspicuous. But the suit of a normal business man was much commoner on the streets of Ylisstol.

Sothe's thoughts were stopped when he heard the familiar noise of a hammer being pulled back on a gun. Looking in his mirror, he saw a man in his back seat pointing a gun at him while reading a newspaper and holding a cup of coffee. Sothe's entire body went cold and he swallowed deeply.

"Keep driving Sothe Walker," the man said nonchalantly.

"H-how did you get in here?" Sothe said. He would have heard him! It wasn't possible-

"No one ever notices me," he said simply. The man took a sip of his drink, "But you'll have heard of me. My name is Kellam Anderson."

Sothe's hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, "Yes…I have heard of you." And that was not good at all.

Kellam nodded, "That'll make things easier. So I'll cut to the chase. Miriel Avarige hired me. She wants you brought to Solution headquarters."

Sothe realized he had been holding his breath. He exhaled, and said, "Can I just tell you what she wants and let you tell her what I said?"

Kellam looked up from his newspaper for the first time and met Sothe's eyes. It was cold, rather dead gaze, "Pay attention to the road Sothe."

Sothe glanced down from the mirror and jerked the steering wheel to the right to avoid a car. Adrenalin coursing through his veins, he glanced back to Kellam. The man had gone back to reading his paper.

"No. Miriel specifically wanted me to have you brought in," Kellam said as he turned a page. "I obey orders."

Sothe nodded absentmindedly as he began looking for an escape plan. Surely he could disarm Kellam and escape. Perhaps ramming the car for a distraction?

"I wouldn't do that," Kellam said.

"What?" Sothe jumped in his seat. Naga, was he nervous.

"Your muscles tensed. You were thinking of attacking me. But you should know that even if you get the gun away from me, there is a bomb under your car. The minute you try anything I can detonate it," Kellam said, meeting Sothe's eyes for a second time. It wasn't any more pleasant.

Sothe took a moment to find his voice, "But you'd die as well."

Kellam let out a bone chilling laugh, "Oh Mr. Walker, you think I couldn't escape? You truly don't know a thing about me."

Sothe did all he could to keep his composure. Only three things in life frightened him. Death, Robin Sterling and now Kellam Anderson.

"To Solution then? Can you at least tell me why Miriel wants me?" Sothe asked.

Kellam yawned and flipped the page again, "I think it has to do with the Plegian faction Miriel is affiliated with. You know, the one that plans to release some disease into the public of Ylisse to weaken them and frame Ferox. And apparently you know where Sterling is keeping it."

"Sterling has style when he makes his move. Miriel has to rely on him to even try to make it work. She doesn't deserve his help or mine," Sothe said with irritation.

Kellam chuckled, "You stupid people. Thinking that killing so many people will solve your problems. There is no style to killing hundreds of people at once. I may be a hired assassin, but I will have to agree that SHEPHERD, HBI, WIA, they all have the right state of mind for this problem. Sterling has his own agenda. And he doesn't care about you."

"You're wrong," Sothe said with conviction. "Sterling knows the right course of action."

Kellam shook his head, "You're like a stubborn child. I hope you die quite painfully."


	3. The Solution to the Problem: Part II

Solution to the Problem Job

Part II

The Hideout   
Gaius Faraday

"Meet Miriel Avarige, CEO of the company Solution," Gaius said pointing to a picture of the woman on the computer screen. She looked every bit the CEO stereotype. "Solution, as you all probably know, is a company that creates vaccines and medicines. We've all had some sort of drug from Solution at one point in our lives." Around the table the others nodded.

"Then why are we focusing on taking this woman down?" Frederick asked. "My mother once had her life saved by Solution. She wouldn't be here today without Solution."

Gaius nodded, "That's part of the problem. Have you ever noticed the lack of side effects to Solution drugs? There are usually next to none. And that's good for business, isn't it? Don't have to worry about itchy eyes and all that stuff."

The other five team members nodded, not seeing where this was going. But that was how Gaius operated.

"All companies similar to Solution test their products on animals. Monkeys, rats, you get it. But Solution is different. They test on humans," Gaius said, a hint of anger in his voice. "Monkeys are most like humans of all animals, but obviously, not the exact same. Some side effects remain hidden. And that leads to profit loss. Solution is eliminating that profit loss by experimenting their drugs on other people."

"How big of a casualty number are we talking about?" Virion asked, all confusion off his face and replaced by a calm seriousness.

"It varies year to year, but it usually ranges between one thousand and seven thousand," Gaius said. Lissa and Morgan gasped while the others nodded grimly. Their doubts left their faces.

"What you're saying is that every vaccine or drug has been paid for with other people's lives? Then justice has been denied too long, and it shall be delivered by the spectacular Virion!" the prosecutor declared. Lissa giggled next to him.

"So what's the plan?" Anna asked. Gaius could already see her mentally making plans for the job.

"We're running the Plegian Switch con," Gaius said with a smirk. Morgan and Anna nodded, while the others looked on blankly. And that was to be expected, con names really only made sense if you were a con artist.

"For those of you who do not know, here's the plan…" Gaius began with a slight smile.

* * *

The Hideout   
Anna Cassidy

"Solution is a top notch organization. Everyone is trying to move up in the system. That makes it easy for us to go unnoticed," Anna said as she adjusted the red tie on her black suit she'd changed into. As an Anna, she had to look her best when going into a company like Solution. Making the family look bad was a big no.

"Um…how do we go unnoticed?" Lissa asked. She had her suit on just like Anna.

Anna walked over to her examined the young girl. After a moment of contemplation, she loosened Lissa's tie and undid the top most button halfway. After rumpling up Lissa's suit with her hands, Anna nodded, "There. You look like a clueless college intern who got a job by mistake. It's only a matter of time before you're fired. No one wants to associate with you. They'll glance at you and walk faster. Granted you're part in the plan doesn't require much human contact, but better safe than sorry."

Lissa's eyes widened, "Really?"

Anna chuckled, "It's what I do for a living. Same goes for the rest of you." Anna looked at each of the members of the team in their respective clothes for the job. Frederick mirrored what Anna did to Lissa and Gaius loosened his tie a bit more.

They all wore suits, except Virion and Morgan. Virion wore one of his slightly less frilly sets of clothes and Morgan had skin tight black thief's attire. But it was at Gaius' instance that they wore suits. When asked why, he said, "When the Director is bragging about our job, we need to look in top form. Sometimes suits are a bad idea, but we need to wear them whenever possible."

Gaius nodded, "Here are the badges I faked. Hang it on the pocket of your suit." He passed them out to everyone wearing a suit. They had their faces on them. No flaws were visible to Anna. "These will get you through nearly every door except Avarige's office, but Morgan will have no trouble with that one, right?"

Morgan smirked and nodded. Sometimes Anna wondered about her niece.

"One more thing," Gaius said. He produced a small box from behind his back, "No one on my team will go out of the Hideout without style. Well, extra style." Gaius opened the box. Inside there were six pairs of sunglasses.

"It's go time," Gaius said as he put his pair on.

* * *

Solution Headquarters: Main Lobby   
Anna Cassidy

Anna walked to the front desk in the main lobby. It was a surprisingly large lobby, with a second floor as well. All businesses, even Solution, knew that an Anna visiting the headquarters is a big deal. She drew looks and stares, but no one bothered her at all. A few people walked out of her way to let Anna by. It was unspoken law to not disrespect an Anna. Because some way or another, she could mess up your business. Permanently.

That was one of the reasons it was good to have an Anna in your secret agency.

"I'm here for my three o'clock appointment," Anna said warmly to the woman at the desk. No matter that she had made the appointment about an hour or two ago. The business world knew how whimsical Annas could be.

"Ms. Avarige is awaiting you in her office," the woman smiled. "Here, scan this by the elevator and it'll let you through." The woman handed her a visitor's pass. It even had her face on it. With a deft sleight of hand, Anna switch the badge for the one Gaius had given her. The woman didn't even notice.

_I wonder if they made that pass special for me, or if they have a stockpile of Anna passes._

"Have a profitable day," Anna smiled and left. If she were here on real business, she would have taken note how nice the girl at the desk was.

" _Good work. Morgan, get into position,"_ Gaius said over the com link. The com link was like a small earplug that you put in your ear. Except it transmitted your voice over it to the nearby ones that the rest of the team had. They had GPS locating as well, allowing the team's Observer to keep an eye on them. Virion managed the com links, he kept static, interference and background noise out of the transmissions.

Anna swiped the card in the scanner next to the elevator and it opened. The Grifter walked inside and waited patiently as the elevator traveled up the building.

_Hmm…no elevator music. Boring!_

Once the elevator arrived, Anna stepped out and began heading toward the CEO's office. Wasn't a far walk. Once she arrived at the door, she knocked. Less than five seconds later, the door opened.

"Ah, Ms. Anna, it is a pleasure to meet you," Miriel Avarige greeted her.

_She's trying too hard. Bad form._

Anna let a small smile creep on her face. One big enough to show pleasure of being here, small enough to show that she was still serious and professional. "Ms. Avarige, would you like to show me around your headquarters here? I have a very nice business deal I would like to discuss with you."

Miriel smiled widely, "I would love to."

* * *

Solution Headquarters: Back Hallways   
Lissa Caverly

Lissa took her sunglasses off. Honestly, she didn't know how the others wore theirs without distraction. A dark hallway with sunglasses on? Stupid!

"Ms. Caverly, don't stop walking," Frederick said as he peeked around the corner. It was clear, and they continued on.

"Mr. Quinn, there's no reason for formality," Lissa said with irritation and a hint of sarcasm. She  _hated_  that part of being a Princess. "How do you know the way to the server room? Do you just have that great of memory?" she said curiously.

Frederick stopped walking and looked at her, "Gaius didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?" Lissa asked. Once again, she suffered because of her ignorance.

"Keep moving," Frederick ordered while he explained. "Your glasses, they're a computerized SHEPHERD technology." He pointed to the button on the side on the glasses.

The Princess pulled them out, and discovered the button on the side. She pushed it and put them on again, "Woah."

In front of her eyes was a floor layout of the level she was on. On it she clearly saw where the server room was. And at that moment, she realized Frederick was a cheater. Lissa was all impressed over nothing.

"Now that's cool. Do all of you guys get stuff like this?" Lissa asked, gesturing to the glasses and the briefcase she was holding. It folded out into a computer and was less conspicuous. And it was shiny.

Frederick allowed a smile (albeit small) to show on his usually stoic features, "Ms. Caverly, you haven't seen anything yet."

Lissa lightly punched him, "Stop calling me that!" Lissa glared at Frederick.

Frederick sighed, "Fine…Lissa."

Lissa giggled, and that was cut short by the three guards in suits that sprung from behind the next corner, armed and ready to fight.

Lissa gasped and dropped the briefcase.

Frederick however, did not. He jumped forward and bashed his fist into the front guard. The Hitter followed up with another punch, the man's face, or rather nose, exploding with blood. Frederick spun about and with a flat hand chopped the next man in his jugular. The third broke the pattern and threw a punch at Frederick. The Hitter caught the punch and squeezed the man's fist until a loud  _pop_. The man would have screamed over his dislocated fingers, but Frederick punched the man in the temple, sending him to the ground.

The second man got up and pulled out his hand gun. Frederick grabbed him by the elbow quickly, twisted it, and grabbed the gun. With a few quick movements, he disassembled the gun and it fell to the ground in pieces. "I don't like guns," said Frederick coldly.

The briefcase hit the ground.

Frederick grabbed it and handed it to Lissa, "Come on. We need to go."

Lissa nodded and grabbed the case. Frederick quickly threw the bodies into a nearby closet and locked the door. The two continued to the server room which was only a few feet away.

Lissa opened the briefcase and sat down, quickly plugging things in. "Plug this in," Lissa ordered, handing Frederick a complex piece of technology he had clearly never seen before. Only after careful (and detailed) explanation did he fulfil the order.

The Hacker skillfully clicked away on the keyboard. "Ha, this security is a joke! It won't take me long to begin the cloning," she chuckled. Another click of the keyboard, "Alright, I'm in. Now comes the fun part."

* * *

Solution Headquarters: Air Ducts   
Morgan Cassidy

Morgan hummed to herself as she crawled through the air ducts. She couldn't remember the name of the song though. But it was something her mother had used to sing to her. It always made her mad, why couldn't she remember anything except her mother? But she had long since accepted the fact. there was nothing she could do, after all, she'd tried bashing her head against a wall. And if that didn't help, nothing would.

Via the ducts she could get to Miriel Avarige's office and escape the cameras. Most likely, there'd be another camera in the office, but Lissa could easily take care of one camera. At least, Morgan hoped. Uncle G usually did all the technical stuff.

Morgan pushed the sunglasses further up her nose. "Bingo," she whispered and looked down. There was the vent. Just like the glasses said there'd be.

With nimble fingers, she lifted the vent cover off and set it on the other side of the new opening in the floor without a sound. The Thief took the thin rope that was wrapped around her and grabbed one of the ends. The rope wasn't thick, it was smaller than the width of Morgan's pinky.

With years of experience, Morgan attached the rope to the harness on her back and to the device that would hold her up. She put the device on the ceiling of the air duct and it attached with a snap and Morgan knew it was secure. It had been explained to her once how exactly it held her weight, but she couldn't remember. As long as it worked, Morgan was fine with it.

Morgan lithely crawled out of the opening and let the rope lower her down. The floor surely had motion sensors or pressure sensors. She couldn't get onto the floor without triggering them.

" _Morgan? Can you hear me?"_ Lissa said over the com link.

"Of course I can Lissa," Morgan said as she held a finger up to her ear with the com link. The Princess could be ignorant sometimes. This was SHEPHERD tech, it wouldn't fail.

" _I disabled the motion sensors. You're good to go,"_ Lissa said.

Morgan let the rope lower her down even farther until she touched the ground with her toe.

Nothing happened.

"Thanks Lissa," Morgan said while she began her search for the safe. It didn't take long, it would have to be in an easy to find place. The safe ended up being in one of the most obvious places, behind a painting.

_At least it wasn't a painting of ducks._

Morgan grinned as she began to break into it. Oh, how she loved this.

* * *

The Building Across From Solution: Roof   
Virion Chandler

Virion sat on the roof of the building across the street. He had a computer that he monitored ever team member's position and the com links, and his trusty sniper rifle. As well as a cup of coffee.

The Observer and the Mastermind had similar roles. They watched out for everyone and did all the odd jobs. Except Virion shot people like an assassin.

He had the crouch of an expert marksman as he looked through the scope at the people walking in and out of Solution. It was boring at times, just boring businessmen and women.

Virion did another scan by through his scope seeing no one of consequence-

Wait.

The Observer pressed a button and the scope zoomed in. He saw a green haired man walking into Solution. But the man walking a short distance behind him was the one who caught his attention.

Virion swore softly and spoke into the com link, "Gaius, we have a problem. Kellam Anderson is walking into the building."

* * *

Solution Headquarters: Second Floor of the Lobby   
Gaius Faraday

"What did you say?" Gaius muttered slowly.

" _Look at the entrance,"_ Virion said.

Gaius turned to watch the doors. A man Gaius recognized as Sothe Walker stepped in. And Kellam Anderson was right behind him, just as Gaius remembered him. Every YIA agent clashed with Kellam Anderson at some point. And they all failed, and Gaius had his share of failures.

"Abort. Everyone get out of the building as quick as possible," Gaius said hurriedly.

Gaius looked toward the mark. He had been tailing Miriel and Anna for the past ten minutes. "Anna, get out of there. Now," Gaius said quietly. "You're with me, I'm behind you."

He walked away as Sothe came up to Miriel and said, "Warehouse, district three."

Gaius ducked out of Kellam's view. He knew the assassin would recognize him if he wasn't careful. Anna excused herself from Miriel's presence saying that she would be in contact again.

_I gotta get out of here!_

Gaius walked the same way as Anna and they began to escape.

* * *

Solution Headquarters: Server Room   
Lissa Caverly

" _Abort. Everyone get out of the building as quick as possible,"_ Gaius said.

"But I don't have everything yet," Lissa said while still cloning Miriel's computer.

"Doesn't matter. Kellam Anderson is a serious complication," Frederick said. Did he actually sound worried? "I can't take him. We need to get out. Now."

Lissa quickly unplugged the computer. She was only seventy three percent done with the cloning. But it would have to do.

There was a loud  _bang!_ Lissa jumped, extremely startled. Frederick had just taken a guard and bashed his head into a wall. The Hitter looked at her impatiently.

Lissa nodded and packed up the computer. This time she didn't worry about not being done.

* * *

Solution Headquarters: Miriel's Office   
Morgan Cassidy

" _Abort. Everyone get out of the building as quick as possible,"_ Gaius said.

"Crap," Morgan muttered. She was almost done with the safe! Time to drop all caution. Her favorite part.

Morgan slipped a hand into her pocket and pulled a small mechanical charge. A very small bomb. Perfect for breaking open a safe. But it could be quite loud. Well…very loud. Morgan made sure the office door was locked.

Morgan slipped it in between the door of the safe and set it. The Thief quickly dived behind Miriel's desk as she heard a loud  _pop!_

Poking her head up, Morgan saw the door of the safe was now hanging open. She quickly grabbed all of the files inside of it.

There was a knock at the door. More like someone trying to break it down. Several more bodies seemed to collide with the door.

Deftly detaching the device that held her rope, she attached it to the wall next to the window with a reckless plan in mind. Her favorite.

"Thank Naga there's a forest behind this building," Morgan breathed as she began to run. She brought her arms in front of her face as she crashed through the window, laughing all the way and running down the building with practiced ease.

* * *

Streets of Ylisse   
Stahl Donivore

Stahl took yet another sip from his highly caffeinated coffee. Staying awake was his priority, because he needed to be awake to arrest Sothe.

The whole affair was quite pathetic for the YPD. First, a prisoner escaped. Next, they weren't able to catch up to him immediately. And lastly, they were still looking for him. The man was barely trying to hide, he kept popping up on CCTV cameras sporadically throughout the city. The only progress they made was setting up a blockade around the city to stop Walker from escaping.

Stahl's phone rang again. Heather picked it up, clearly annoyed. She may have been new to the force, but she knew incompetence when she saw it. "Yes?" she said with the patience of a woman who'd been waiting for several hours. And Heather could get  _very_ impatient. Stahl had been on the receiving end several times.

Stahl stopped at a traffic light, bored of seeing the same streets over and over again. Seeing that the red light wasn't going to change anytime soon, he glanced toward Heather.

The blonde finally perked up, "Sothe is in front of Solution Headquarters. Drive. Now!"

Stahl smirked and turned on his siren with pleasure. He slammed on the gas and shot through the thankfully clear intersection.

"Holy-" Mia said from the back seat as she slammed into the back of Stahl's seat.

"Stahl, one more thing," Heather said. "They sent a picture of who he was with." The detective flipped the phone towards Stahl who spared a glance.

He did a double take.

"Shit," Stahl said, deflating and nearly swerving.

"What?" the two women said at the same time.

"That's Kellam Anderson. To put in lightly, he's an assassin with a perfect track record," Stahl said. "Call the precinct. We need every available officer down there. And send Legault the picture you just showed me as well as the location."

"Um…Boss? How do you know an assassin?" Mia asked nervously.

Stahl's fingers tightened on the steering wheel subconsciously. He swallowed, "That's a story for another time Mia. We have work to do. Just take my word for it that he's extremely dangerous."

Mia nodded and let the question die. But Heather stared at Stahl from the corner of her eye. Stahl knew he'd hear about this some other time.

_I am not going to deal with this now._

* * *

Solution Headquarters: Outside the Building   
Heather Starr

Heather jumped out of the squad car as Legault and Matthew pulled up near them. Legault walked up to Stahl and had a whispered conversation with the Detective Inspector. Heather eavesdropped a bit, an old bad habit that she was in no hurry to dispose of.

"This picture is a joke, right?" Legault said. His hands were actually shaking.

_I guess Mr. Secret Agent Man isn't as cool as he thinks he is._

Stahl shook his head, "I called for all the backup I could."

Legault snorted, "I won't be enough. Kellam Anderson is no small time criminal."

"And HBI should be focusing on taking him down," Stahl said with irritation and another emotion Heather couldn't place.

"They're having better luck than  _you_  ever had," Legault said coldly.

Stahl didn't reply, "We're going in. Come with or don't."

Heather looked around, there were several more police cars around the building. And about thirty police officers got out of said cars. Pretty good number for the short notice, Heather supposed. But after hearing that conversation, the confidence Heather had had wilted somewhat.

Stahl walked forward toward Solution, "We're going in now." He had his gun out.

"Guns?" Heather said with not a little bit of shock.

"I'm hoping we won't need them," Stahl said. "But with Kellam Anderson, one must take precautions."

Heather took her gun out slowly. She'd never killed anyone, and she didn't want to either.

The team of detectives spearheaded the YPD force as they walked toward the main doors. Civilians seemed to get the hint and none were in sight. Two people walked out of the doors. Heather bumped into the orange haired one.

"Sorry there, Goldilocks," the man said with a sheepish grin.

Heather glared at him, "Don't call me that. It's Heather."

The man nodded and gave a salute, "I shall remember that cupcake. Have fun with whatever you're doing Heather." He turned around and accompanied the Anna he was walking with.

Heather just shook her head. "Men," she muttered quietly.

Stahl pushed the door open and reached into his pocket and pulled out his badge. Walking into the lobby, he shouted, "YPD! Nobody move!"

Heather scanned the second floor of the lobby and saw Sothe Walker talking with a woman whose face Heather knew from the news, Miriel Avarige. The pair was quite conspicuous.

The two glanced at each other, then said something quietly, and began to walk away.

Heather made to run after them, but Stahl stopped her. She looked at where Stahl's eyes were. The man from the picture stood in front of them, a slight smile on his face. Heather hadn't even noticed him.

"Well Detective Inspector, are we going to do this the hard way?" Kellam said, his voice held no emotion. Heather realized the grin wasn't even legitimate. It was mocking.

Stahl's reply was to lift his gun toward Kellam. The assassin chuckled, and his hand flashed. An echoing  _crack_  filled the room as Kellam now held a smoking gun. To Heather's right, an officer fell over. The assassin reloaded the pistol and put it back into its holster.

Stahl blinked as he refixed his gun on Kellam after having let it drop during the shot from Kellam. But Kellam didn't waste time like Stahl did. Suddenly two pistols were in his hands and twelve shots from both sounded off. Kellam let the clips fall to the ground as twelve officers fell to the ground. Heather found herself mentally thanking fate that none of the team members were hit.

She proceeded to mentally slap herself.

Heather bent down to one of the officers nearby, the bullet pierced his neck in a way that he died without a scream. The blonde detective checked another detective, a woman she'd seen around the precinct a few times. She died the same way.

Heather nearly threw up.  _All_  of them had died this way. There had been no screams. She fixed a stare on Kellam. He met her eye contact and grin curled upward.

"Let me go Stahl. It'll be better for the both of us. My contract is up anyway. I'm done here," Kellam said quietly.

Stahl's arm was shaking as he pointed the gun. The brown haired detective let the gun slip from his fingers. It fell to the ground with a clatter.

"No one follow him. It's not worth it," Stahl said in total defeat. Heather couldn't believe her boss could ever sound so…helpless.

Kellam walked to the exit with that same grin, "Don't worry Stahl. You didn't get me then, you didn't get me now. Just accept that you're a failure."

Heather saw Stahl's hands form fists, but he did nothing.

Kellam laughed and left through the doors nonchalantly.

It took a minute for Stahl to recover. And Heather didn't blame him at all. But when he did, he said, "Everyone…gather up our fallen friends. I'm going after Walker."

Heads around him nodded. Stahl motioned to the team to follow him.

* * *

The YIA Van   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius looked through the files Morgan had stolen inside the large van Frederick was driving. Things were worse than he'd thought. Much worse.

"What's the verdict?" Virion asked, a small smile tugging at his mouth with the joke. But upon seeing Gaius' expression, it soured.

Gaius sighed and looked at the team, "Miriel Avarige is affiliated with a terrorist group. She plans to release a deadly disease into the Ylissean public as an act of terrorism."

Lissa gasped, "Wh-what do we do?"

Gaius popped a sucker into his mouth, "I think I know where she is. Frederick! Start heading to district three! And step on it, we don't have much time!"

* * *

?   
Robin Sterling

Robin leaned his cane next on the table. He didn't need a cane, but it was more for the classy look of it.

"Sir, there's something that's come up," Ishtar said from the doorway.

Robin turned towards her, more or less disinterested, "…And?"

"Avarige is going forward with her plan. She wants our help," Ishtar said. The woman had that poker face Robin had taught her. It made him smirk.

Sterling thought for a moment, "…No, let her do it by herself. I want to know if these new agents from the YIA are any good. Tell her she has my full confidence and to go forward."

Ishtar nodded and left. Sterling smirked and leaned toward a phone next to him and hit the speed dial.

"Tharja? Contact Kellam. Tell him I have a job for him in the near future…..Yes, it'll be one he'll like…"


	4. The Solution to the Problem: Part III: Finale

The Problem to the Solution Job

Part III: Finale

Sector Three: Warehouse   
Gaius Faraday

Ylisstol was divided into four sectors. The city was circular, and the four sectors were divided equally. And sector three was certainly the shadiest of the four. So naturally, that's where the Crew tracked Miriel and Sothe to.

They drove up to a small warehouse that looked unguarded, but had several men hiding around the building.

_Of course it's a warehouse. Why must I always suffer these damn clichés?_

Gaius sat on the back of the van, the back doors hanging open exposing the high tech equipment they had. Around him stood his crew. "Alright, we're going to make this nice and quick. Princess, I want you to take control. Every camera, every possible method of detection I want you to control. This warehouse is yours, do not let anyone else try and take it.

"Freddy Bear, you're going to clear out every guard you see. No mercy, I will not have us being kind to terrorists. Kill them if you want to, but whatever you do, make sure to hide the bodies.

"Red, you're in charge of the com links, keep an eye out for us. And as for Morgan and Ruffles, you two are with me. Ruffles, get your most intimidating gun. Morgan," Gaius began. "You need to stand like this." Gaius applied his weight evenly between his feet and folded his arms. He took on an emotionless expression that made him look very dangerous. "Both of you wear your sunglasses. I'll do the rest. Let's go take down a terrorist."

* * *

Sector Three: Warehouse   
Anna Cassidy

"You're pretty good with computers I guess," Anna looked over Lissa's shoulder. None of it made sense to her, but by the ease Lissa had and the speed she operated at, that was her only conclusion. Her hands were in no way tense, and her expression was relaxed. Anna mentally smacked herself, sometimes she let her Grifter senses get out of control.

Lissa smiled but didn't stop working, "I had lots of time to practice. Being cooped up in the castle had some advantages." She squinted at the screen, "Bingo. I'm in, but it looks like someone's here to stop me. I think I can take him."

Anna fell silent, not wanting to distract her. But that silence was short when Lissa spoke up, "So what's the deal with you and Gaius? Are you two a couple?"

If Anna had been holding something, she'd have probably dropped it. The Grifter turned back towards Lissa, "What gives you that idea?"

Lissa chuckled as she clicked away on her computer, "Oh, just the way you look at each other, how you always sit next to each other. And other things." Lissa winked without looking away from the screen.

Anna wrinkled her nose, "He's my best friend. We've known each other since we were five years old. That's just weird."

"How'd you meet?" Lissa said, her brow furling as she began typing faster. Now Anna was seeing the tenseness in her hands and expression. Nervous.

"Well, we'd both just started school for the first time. It was lunch time, and I had a piece of candy in my lunchbox. I had just unwrapped it, and  _bam,_ there he was. You should have seen his face, it was like he was thirsty and I was withholding water. Gaius begged me for it, and in the end, he offered me a gold coin for it." Anna smirked to herself as she reached into her pocket and flipped that coin in her fingers.

Anna laughed, "We became fast friends after that. It was probably for the best, I kept his stealing habits under control and he, well, he  _tried_ to satisfy my love of gold. Though that probably encouraged his stealing. Looking back on it, it's no surprise that we're con artists."

"…Yep, you should be a couple," Lissa said, the nervous tension still in her features. "But I'll need to cut the story short, this guy is actually really good. He almost locked me out a minute ago."

"Can you take control?" Anna asked. She didn't really know what Lissa meant by locked out, but it couldn't be good.

Lissa spared Anna a look, "I don't know. This guy…his style is familiar. This might turn really bad. Really quickly."

"Do you know him?" Anna cocked her head. Though she resisted putting a finger on her chin. A Grifter with habits like that was a bad Grifter.

"Brady Jensen… more commonly known by his screen name: Pandemonium," Lissa said, not even looking away from the computer for a moment nor ceasing her keyboarding. "Every hacker worth anything knows about him. He creates chaos, and then takes control. He's one of the best."

"So what does that mean?" Anna asked with worry.

"It means we'll be lucky if I can hold him back and buy some time. Better tell Gaius I'm losing control," Lissa said. "He's going in without my eyes on everything."

* * *

Sector Three: Warehouse   
Frederick Quinn

Frederick felt the familiar feeling of his fist colliding with a face.

Frederick looked around and brushed the dust off his shoulders. Looking his best was something he agreed with Gaius about. They were professionals after all. And professionals wore suits. And sunglasses.

" _Um…guys? I just got locked out. We don't have the cameras,"_ Lissa's quivering voice said.

" _Understood. Try to get back in. But I can make do with it,"_ Gaius said.  _"Frederick. Find the other Hacker and take him out. And everyone, keep in mind that we're operating blind for now."_

"Understood," Frederick said. The Hitter looked around feeling slightly helpless. There were no other cars around so Frederick didn't know the first place to look. Hackers were a sort Frederick couldn't hope to understand.

So he did a very unfrederick like thing, and asked for help.

"Lissa, if you were not in the van, where would you hide?" Frederick said quietly.

* * *

Sector Three: Warehouse   
Gaius Faraday

"Alright you two, the both of you need to look as intimidating as possible. I do the talking," Gaius said, adjusting his tie on his suit. The Mastermind missed his green sweatshirt. Even though he made them wear suits, it just wasn't Gaius' style.

Virion smirked knowingly, "You're doing your gloating thing, aren't you?"

"Hush Ruffles, don't ruin my game," Gaius said. "And to answer your question, no. I'm doing a capstone." He checked his holster under his arm to make sure Morgan hadn't stolen it. The car keys were gone, but Gaius didn't need those right now.

Virion snorted, "As if that's much different."

"Uncle G? Something's going on," Morgan said, peeking through the large warehouse doors.

Gaius looked through as well, and he saw the marks arguing. That meant they didn't work well together and were only on the same side due to circumstances.

_Perfect._

"I don't think this is a good idea Avarige," Sothe Walker said. "We should wait for Sterling to show."

"Quiet you insolent fool! Sterling gave us the go ahead, so we're using this," Miriel pointed to a strange device behind her. Probably for releasing the disease, Gaius supposed. "I will not you stop me from making my name live in history!"

"If Sterling was truly with us, he'd be here. I think he's abandoning us," Sothe said in a quieter tone. "And you just don't want admit it."

"Alright," Gaius said having heard enough to know what to work with. "Follow my lead." The Mastermind walked in through the doors.

He pulled out Farina's custom gun from his holster. She had programmed it so it would only let him shoot it. Anyone else would receive an electric shock. It would also be a giveaway when Morgan had stolen it. Gaius then reached for one of his fake IDs and showed it to the arguing pair, their expressions becoming far more serious, "World Intelligence Association. Under my jurisdiction, you no longer have rights. As terrorists, you are expected to keep quiet and come quietly. Any violence on your part will result in one of my friends shooting you." Gaius gestured to Morgan and Virion.

"WIA doesn't have jurisdiction here," Miriel said snidely. "You can't arrest us."

"The WIA has jurisdiction everywhere. We are independent from every country and organization. We operate on our own to keep the peace," Gaius said, and his voice had changed with the disguise. Instead of the usual swagger in his voice mixed with cheerfulness, he'd adopted a cold, harsh authoritative tone. The kind a boss used to get people to do what they wanted. And the kind every WIA agent had the ability to do.

"But you can't stop us," Sothe said, his confidence regaining. Despite having been in prison, he still had a police officer's bravado.

"From doing what?" Gaius quirked an eyebrow while smirking coldly. "I see a few two year olds fiddling with daddy's equipment. I should be back in my office, not babysitting dumbasses."

Miriel fumed, "We are going to spread this disease. I  _will_ see it done."

"Disease?" Gaius said expectantly. "What's it going to do, make me cough?"

"It's the Valmese Bird Flu, reputed to have killed over fifty million people," Miriel said angrily. "You won't be able to save yourselves."

"Why? Why do you even do this?" Gaius said, this time with genuine curiosity. "Kill that many people. If you're bottling up anger, just take it out on some street rat robbing liquor stores to satisfy his addiction." Gaius felt a little sick, having to resort to insulting homeless kids. But WIA agents were the best of the best. The toughest of the toughest. The cruelest of the cruelest. The ones he knew would calmly stoop to that level.

"Robin Sterling, he says this is one of his warmup acts. He said he wanted Ylisse to taste what he's capable of," Sothe said. "And we'll see it done."

"And what are you, Sterling's finest?" Gaius said, letting a small chuckled pass his lips to come across as skeptical.

"Yeah we are! What's so funny about it?" Sothe said while Miriel nodded furiously. "We're the best, and that's why we've been trusted with this. Do you see anyone else?"

Gaius was openly laughing, "Naga, you two are stupid. First off, you didn't notice this." Gaius held up a recorder in his hand. He'd recorded the entire conversation. With a click of a button the recording stopped.

"Second…well, let's just say the good Detective Inspector hiding over there is lucky that you two are so incompetent," Gaius said while looking over his shoulder with a smirk.

* * *

Sector Three: Warehouse   
Mia Meridas

Mia didn't even know the WIA agent, but she knew he was good. They'd arrived ten minutes ago and overheard the entire conversation. And when the agent called out Stahl, Mia had actually gasped. The purple haired woman had thought they were in a good hiding place. It only served as a reminder that she still had far to go.

Stahl stood up, glaring at Sothe and Miriel, "Thank you agent, we can take this from here." The agent nodded, still laughing slightly

Suddenly Sothe pulled a gun out and pointed it at Stahl. There was a loud  _bang!_

Sothe screamed.

Prosecutor Virion was pointing his sniper rifle and Sothe was bleeding from his arm and laying on the ground in pain. "I'll handle the machine," he said as he walked over to whatever was supposed to release the disease and began to dismantle it.

_So Prosecutor Virion is a secret agent…cool._

Heather threw the purple haired girl a pair of handcuffs and gestured to Miriel. Mia bounded over and locked the glasses wearing woman up while ignoring the glares that came from the redhead. Heather did the same for Sothe, though with his injury he probably didn't need it. But Heather always like to take extra precautions with men.

The orange haired agent walked over to Stahl and handed him the recorder, "I trust you can make use of this, Detective Inspector. And I also trust that we were never here, correct?" The agent raised an eyebrow towards him.

_It's just like a movie!_

Stahl nodded, "Thanks. Your help was invaluable."

The agent nodded, "Stay vigilant detective, there's a storm coming. This was but only the beginning. The WIA can't be everywhere."

Stahl nodded, "We'll let you go then."

The agent nodded and his two friends left too. The redhead winked at her and Prosecutor Virion carried the machine in pieces.

"Let's get these two back to the precinct then. I'll drive," Stahl said, and he sounded much happier than after his encounter with Kellam. "Let's go tell Chief Gregor that our team was a success."

* * *

Sector Three: Warehouse   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius laughed, "That went better than I expected."

"Do you often impersonate a WIA agent?" Frederick asked. "I imagine they'd hate that if they knew."

"Only on Tuesdays. But more importantly, did you get that Hacker?" Gaius asked.

Frederick shook his head, "He ran. I saw him, and it was certainly Pandemonium. I'd recognize him anywhere."

"That's fine. This tells a lot, Sterling is stepping up his game if he's hired Kellam and Pandemonium," Gaius said.

"Indeed. I'll take it as a compliment," a new voice smirked.

Gaius stiffened visibly, and turned around in a blink of an eye, his back to the black van. The newcomer had a combination of a smirk and a sneer. With his white hair, it looked to Gaius as if he had never changed.

Robin Sterling would always be a threat.

"Congratulations, you got rid of two idiots that were of no use to me. So what, time to celebrate?" Robin sneered. "Can I join?"

Gaius had no hesitation as he pulled the gun from the holster and pointed it directly at Robin's face. "It was a mistake coming here Sterling," Gaius said with little emotion. "I wouldn't think that you'd be so stupid."

Robin laughed, "You can't shoot me. Not if you want any of your friends to live. My team is superior to yours in every way. Ishtar has her sights on you, so does Kellam. Tharja is just a short walk away from us with twenty of my men. And even Pandemonium has hacked your car. It'll blow up with my signal. Shooting me should be your last objective."

Gaius swore, but held the gun level, "At SHEPHERD we're taught to make necessary sacrifices. But you know all about that, don't you?"

"But that's not the Faraday way, is it?" Robin smirked.

Gaius stood still for several long seconds, then lowered the gun. Robin clapped his hands mockingly, "Very good Gaius my friend. I let you win this one. But next time, you won't be allowed to succeed. You and your team better brace yourselves."

"We will stop you at every opportunity," Virion spoke up. Gaius had almost forgotten that this fight was just as much Virion's as it was his.

Robin Sterling laughed in a way only Robin Sterling could laugh, "If I wanted someone to try and stop me, I'd take on a true challenge. Tell Stefan I'll go toe to toe any day. But until then, continue to struggle on." Robin turned around and flipped his cane in his hand and walked away whistling a tune.

"I can take him down from here, just give me the word," Virion muttered to Gaius, the anger evident in his voice.

"Don't. While it may be a bluff about his team, I'm not chancing it," Gaius said. "But we do need to be careful. Sterling wasn't trying that time. But next time he will be. And we'll be ready."

* * *

?   
Lon'qu Zalman

_Three….two….one…._

Lon'qu ducked to the door as the rotating camera passed by giving him a two second window. The lock of the door had a computerized lock, but with the help of some WIA tech, it clicked right open. The agent slid through the office building doors.

Lon'qu looked behind his back and gestured for Ranulf to follow him. Both were members of the WIA sent to do two things. Retrieve information, and if possible, kill their target. The former was more important.

Lon'qu screwed the silencer onto his handgun. Ranulf did the same. Ranulf whispered, "Two Hitters inside on the right. Ex-PSI."

Their mark had a history of hiring people that had dropped from the Plegian Security Institution.

Lon'qu nodded, he pointed at Ranulf. Ranulf nodded and pulled the hammer back on his gun silently.

The blue haired man dived around the corner, and at the same time he fired two silent shots from his gun. The two Hitters hit the ground with barely a sound.

Lon'qu passed over the bodies wordlessly. The two agents quickly ascended the stairs of the large building. Their mark was currently residing at the top of an office building according to their Observer.

Lon'qu whispered into the com link, "Observer, what's the view?"

" _Three ahead. Elevator to the left, two outside, one in. I can get you to the top floor if you get inside,"_ came the Observer's level voice.

"Copy that Observer. Keep me posted," Lon'qu breathed. He glanced at Ranulf and nodded. The blue haired man grinned and reloaded.

The two Hitters stealthily got close to the elevator guards. Lon'qu set the nearby one in his sights and clicked the trigger.

The first guard hit the ground. The second realized what was going on, but by then it was too late. Ranulf's gun delivered to him his death.

He nodded at Ranulf and the Hitter pressed the elevator button. Lon'qu pointed his gun at the closed door.

Three seconds later the door opened, revealing a guard. Lon'qu shot the man dead. He pulled the corpse out of the elevator and the two Hitters walked in.

Ranulf spoke into the com link, "Observer, the letters are in the envelope. Time for the postman to pick them up."

Lon'qu rolled his eyes, but Ranulf was right. This was a top secret job, they needed to be careful. And that meant talking in code.

" _Roger that, the package is in the mail,"_ the Observer said.

Lon'qu felt the elevator begin to move. He glanced at Ranulf, "Reload."

The two reloaded their guns as the number on the elevator climbed to floor number thirty.

"Package will be received in three…two…one…" Lon'qu began. After the count of one, the door opened.

Lon'qu lifted his gun as Ranulf did the same and opened fire. The two guards outside of the entrance didn't stand a chance as both had bullets pierce their hearts.

"Go," was Lon'qu's one word order. Ranulf nodded.

The two cleared out the small area around the elevator. The seven guards that had been there all were piled into the elevator.

"Move on," Lon'qu said quietly. Footsteps sounded behind them.

"Or maybe not," came an annoyed voice.

Lon'qu turned around to see their mark. Robin Sterling stood there holding his cane, "I guess WIA is forced to deal with me, huh? Something about the incompetence of the YIA?"

Lon'qu didn't hesitate to shoot Sterling. But the bullet went right through him!

"Projection. Really Zalman, did you think it'd be easy?" Robin sneered. Robin disappeared.

"Shitty little rat," Ranulf growled.

"Let's split. We can take him," Lon'qu said.

* * *

The Office Building   
Robin Sterling

Robin chuckled as he shut off the projector. The white haired man jumped off the chair and grabbed his cane, flipping it in his hand.

He walked out of the tech room and stood still, listening hard. He heard the sound of his men's gunshots. Seemingly a good place to start, Robin headed there.

Upon pure instinct, he ducked at a slight noise. A silenced shot struck the wall behind him as he saw the blue hair of one of the agents whisk by.

"Here, kitty, kitty, kitty," Robin muttered. He heard the same noise again and swung his cane in that direction. The cane was reinforced with steel, so it made a perfect blunt instrument.

To his surprise, but satisfaction, he heard a cry of pain. Robin had hit the blue haired man in the head.

Robin smirked as he pointed the cane at Ranulf, "Your kind never learn. But there's one thing you should know before I kill you. I'm Robin Sterling," the end of the cane popped up, revealing a crosshair and opening in the base of the cane, "and this is a guncane."

Robin clicked the trigger and shot Ranulf through the head.

On the other side of the floor, there was a crash. A man ran into the room, "Sir! The WIA agent jumped out of the window."

Robin ran to the other side of the building where the man jumped. Staring down, he saw a helicopter begin to ascend from where it had caught him and flew away.

Despite himself, Sterling raised an eyebrow, "He'll live. Let him go and come clean up this mess." Robin gestured to the dead agent. "We need to get out of here, it isn't safe anymore."

* * *

The Solution to the Problem Job

Mission:  **Accomplished**


	5. The Big Bang Job: Part I

Job #2: The Big Bang

Part I

Plegia City's Streets   
Stefan Gerrard

Stefan rode in the unmarked car through the streets of Plegia City, the country's capitol. He had just been at the Capitol Castle with the woman he had under his protection for an important meeting.

Exalt Emmeryn Caverly was someone whose protection he wanted to see to personally.

The Exalt sat next to him in the small limousine. In Stefan's opinion, she was sitting a little too close to him for comfort. And while he took pride in the fact that he wasn't some mindless man who followed his superior's orders and never talked back, telling Emmeryn to move over probably wouldn't fly well.

A loud snore snapped Stefan from his thoughts. The man sitting across from him was a member of his team: Mark Strife. The man was an oddity. He had no acting skills, yet he was Stefan's Grifter. But when the man was in the process of conning someone, he was flawless. But when he tried for personal interest, he failed. Miserably. It was quite funny to watch sometimes.

Normally, Stefan wouldn't tolerate Mark falling asleep in front of their Exalt. But when seeing the expression on the Ylissean-Plegian ambassador, Stefan felt like he could allow it. Innes' expression was something that was absolute disgust. And none of them really liked Innes (Emmeryn included) so they all took pleasure in Innes' displeasure (Emmeryn included, but she'd never admit it).

The driver of the limo was another member of Stefan's team: Kris Holst. The Hitter was one of the best Stefan had ever seen. The man's photographic memory was the reason why he was the driver. Kris memorized every possible escape route he saw when driving. When Stefan's team needed to protect someone, Kris always came along whereas some of Stefan's team weren't always needed.

There was a gasp in front of Stefan. It seemed like Innes had had enough of Mark's snoring and he pushed him out of the seat. Emmeryn tried (unsuccessfully) to hide her chuckle. Stefan merely rolled his eyes as Innes glared at Mark.

"I wasn't sleeping!" the brown haired man said. Mark proceeded to yawn and start to fall asleep again. Though Stefan mentally cut him some slack, he'd been keeping Mark busy of late.

"Stay awake Strife. No more sleeping on the job," Stefan sighed. "Besides, we'll be back before long."

"Sorry Stef," Mark said guiltily while Kris' laughter could be heard from the driver's seat. Knowing Kris, he would be making fun of Mark for a while.

* * *

Plegia City's Rooftops   
Kellam Anderson

Kellam assembled the sniper rifle with calm efficient ease. He stood on one of the many rooftops of the various buildings of the Plegian City. All through the city were neon lights and moving people. Plegia had recovered from the war quickly, and their capitol city had become a city that truly never slept. And that meant everything from casinos to big businesses.

Kellam pulled out his smartphone and memorized the picture that was flashing on it. The assassin flashed a rare grin, Sterling had said he'd like this job. And Robin Sterling was right, Kellam hated these types of people. And that's why people like Kellam existed. Though Kellam could count on one hand how many people were even close to as good as him.

Kellam crouched down, not like he normally would because no one in Plegia City ever looked to the roofs. There was no need for stealth. This was just cold, clean and efficient business. So that meant no stealth and all accuracy. Besides, he was naturally stealthy.

The assassin spoke into the com link, "Next phase initiate. Tail them. Move in at the planned time." So Robin wanted him to organize a fall man. It didn't matter to Kellam, assassinations were his business and plots were Sterling's.

Kellam looked through the sniper scope and spotted the black limo traveling without haste. Kellam was surprised the Exalt herself had come here, Kellam had to admit she had guts. Most of Plegia would be happy to murder Ylisse's leader. But of course, she was with Stefan Gerrard. And that meant safety from everyone except Kellam.

How Kellam wished he could just shoot Gerrard now! It would make things so much easier, but Sterling had been adamant. Kellam supposed Sterling had a bit of a soft spot for his old friend. Kellam was sure it would be a mistake.

The car traveled closer slowly. This wasn't even a challenge. His target was right next to the window. The bullet proof glass wouldn't stop Kellam's specially engineered sniper rifle. The assassin used every advantage he could possibly use, new weapons, blackmail, everything. There was a reason he'd never failed an assignment. Most people called it dirty tactics. Kellam disagreed, in the bitter business of assassination it only mattered if they ended up dead.

Kellam could see the light colored hair through the tinted window. Visualizing the picture of the target, he aimed as if he could see the target. And since Kellam could see their hair, he basically could see the entire person. One feature and he could pinpoint the rest of the target's features.

The crosshair fell onto the base of the target's ear. Kellam adjusted, moving it slightly down. A bullet through the neck would kill anyone at that angle. No questions asked. Just how he liked it.

Kellam's crosshair moved with the car as it slowly moved. Flawlessly, Kellam followed it without moving a hair's distance. He had years of practice, and no hesitation.

Kellam allowed a triumphant smirk to show on his features as he pulled the trigger.

* * *

Plegia City's Streets   
Stefan Gerrard

Stefan chuckled at Mark's guilty look. But that was interrupted by the shattering of the window to his left by a gunshot.

Stefan's training took over on instinct before even figuring out who was shot. He shoved Emmeryn down onto the seat and laid protectively close to her.

Only days after would he realize how scandalous the position looked.

Mark was the one who figured out who was dead. The Grifter felt the ambassador for his vitals and came up with nothing, "Innes is dead."

"Kris. Drive!" Stefan shouted. The blue haired man in the driver's seat instantly sped the car up. Civilians were forced to get out of the road as Kris drove. At times like these, they couldn't be slowed down.

Bullets hit the back window of the car. "Stef, we've got company!" shouted Kris as he swerved in and out of cars. For being in a limo, Kris was quite good at that.

"Mark! Grab me my rifle!" Stefan ordered. He turned to Emmeryn and looked at her with concern, "Are you unharmed?"

The Exalt nodded, but when she got a glimpse of Innes' corpse she froze up in fear. Stefan didn't have time for that. It would have to wait.

"Here," Mark handed the Director his weapon of choice, the rifle hidden under the seat of the limo. Emmeryn looked at the gun in surprise and Stefan grinned. No one survived in the field without more than healthy paranoia.

Stefan took it with a nod of thanks, "Kris, what are we looking at?" Stefan quickly loaded a clip into the gun.

Kris leaned to see out of his mirror, "Three cars. Men leaning out of windows with guns. At least two people per truck. Maybe more."

Stefan nodded, "Open the sun roof."

Kris caught Stefan's eye in his rearview mirror and raised an eyebrow, but opened the roof. Stefan took a deep breath and nodded to Mark.

Mark rolled down the side window and pointed both his pistols and began giving Stefan cover fire. The three knew each other so well they already knew the plan without needing to go over it. That was the sign of an excellent team.

Stefan stood up in the car so his upper body was sticking out of the sun roof. Aiming the rifle at the distracted drivers, he shot the first one. The bullet struck the man in the center of the forehead.

The driver was most likely killed instantly, he slumped back in his seat as the truck barreled into some business on the side of the street.

Stefan reloaded quickly and shot at his next target: the second car's tire.

The effect was immediate. The car rocked from the lack of support and the gunner fell out of the window he was sticking out of. The driver screamed as she tried to regain control of the vehicle. Effectively the second car was done with the chase.

The third car was a harder challenge. Stefan no longer had the element of surprise. The gunner turned towards Stefan and let loose his machine gun.

The Director wisely ducked down into the car to avoid certain death. "Kris! ETA!" he shouted as he reached under his seat and pulled out a shotgun. Like he said, a sense of more than healthy paranoia.

Kris suddenly twisted the steering wheel sharply to the right, "Thirteen minutes! Depending on who else shows up! I might be able to shave it down to eleven."

Stefan nodded and did some quick calculations in his mind, "We're splitting after I take care of this last one. Strife, you're with me. Emm, stick close to us. Kris, can you escape them if more turn up?" Stefan already knew the answer.

Kris nodded with a slightly crazed grin, "Are you doubting me Stef? I'll lose any that show up. ButI can get you a window of maybe a minute if you get this guy off me. You'll need to be quick."

Stefan pulled the hammer back on the shotgun and just said, "Watch me." He winked at Emmeryn.

The green haired man stood up and in one fluid motion pointed the shotgun at the driver's front window and pulled the trigger.

The glass shattered scaring the shit out of the driver. The car proceeded to crash in to a streetlight and was out of commission. Stefan ducked back into the car.

Kris slammed his foot on the gas pedal and sped along the road and turned into a dark alley at earliest opportunity. He slowed down enough that the three wouldn't get hurt.

Stefan, Emmeryn and Mark all jumped out of the car and Kris sped away.

"Alright, there's a YIA safe house nearby that we can hideout in until we have a way out of Plegia safely," Stefan said, already missing the shotgun he had had to ditch in the car. He helped Emmeryn to her feet.

"Is it close?" Emmeryn said in a small voice. It didn't matter if you were the leader of a nation or not, seeing someone die in front of you was serious business. Stefan knew it, and he saw it whenever seeing rookie agents.

"Somewhat. We'll need to cross through people dense areas," Mark said staring at the way they had come from in case any of the men tried to follow them. But more likely Mark was trying to figure out where exactly they were in the city.

"Alright, Mark, walk ahead and get a change of clothes for Emmeryn. And be as fast as possible. Sorry, but you're a bit too recognizable," Stefan chuckled and Emmeryn joined in, though he could tell she didn't really mean it. But he could also tell she appreciated the effort.

Mark nodded and finally put his two pistols away and walked away down the alley.

Stefan turned back to Emmeryn only to find her much closer to him than she'd been before. And before he knew it, Stefan, Director of one of the most efficient agencies in the world, was being kissed by the Exalt.

It was probably one of the better things that had happened to him recently.

"Thank you. You probably saved my life back there. I could have died," Emmeryn breathed. She was right. The bullet could have been meant for her.

Stefan allowed for a small grin, "You know I wouldn't let that happen to you."

Emmeryn nodded solemnly, but she still kissed Stefan again and he returned it.

"Someone's going to find out about us eventually," Stefan whispered.

"Hopefully it won't be Chrom. He'll probably kill you," Emmeryn chuckled.

"Nah, I'm too good," Stefan said with a cocky grin.

There was laughing behind them. The two broke apart to see Mark Strife trying to contain his laughter without success.

Stefan was quite annoyed that Mark Strife was immune to his death glare, "What's so funny." It wasn't a question.

Mark began to regain his composure and he said, "Kris owes me money. He didn't think you two were together. But I knew you were!"

"How?" Emmeryn said.

"Your Highness, it wasn't hard to spot to the experienced eye," Mark's eyes twinkled with mirth. "And I am quite good at Grifting."

"No formalities," Emmeryn ordered. "You saved my life."

"As you wish," Mark bowed, smirk still evident on his face.

"Anyway," Stefan began, "did you get the clothes?"

Mark nodded and handed a shopping bag to Emmeryn and proceeded to open one of the doors to the buildings in the alley, "Milady, your changing room awaits."

Emmeryn walked in and presumably began to change.

Five minutes passed…

And another five…

Five more…

"Is something wrong, Emm?" Stefan asked with a knock on the door worriedly.

"Um…" Emmeryn began. "I'm not sure I can go out like this."

"What do you mean?" Stefan said patiently. Something told him it was Mark's fault.

The door swung open and Stefan actually gasped. Emmeryn wasn't dressed at all like he'd thought she'd ever be. She almost looked like a…

Emmeryn looked down and wrapped her arms around herself, "I look like a stripper."

Stefan slowly turned on Mark, "…Mark?"

Mark fidgeted, "What? It wasn't like I could take a lot of time! You told me to hurry, and it was the closest thing to the checkout desk. Did you want me to steal?"

Stefan kicked Mark in the leg. Hard.

"Your coat Mark," Stefan ordered.

Mark scowled as he handed over his trench coat. Stefan knew how much the green coat meant to him. The Director gave it to Emmeryn who nodded thankfully. Though she looked far more conspicuous. But that was a minor complication Stefan could deal with.

"Alright, let's get going," Stefan said. The three companions walked out of the alley onto the busy street.

They walked down the bright, crowded street. There were no suspicious looks or anything of the sort. They had gotten lucky. Plegia City, after all, was a den of crazy people. There was always someone more conspicuous.

"Hey Stef? I think you've got some gum on your shoe," Mark said with a glance towards Stefan's feet.

The green haired man's eyes widened slightly. Stefan knew what that meant, someone was tailing them.

"Emm, slouch a bit," Stefan whispered in her ear. "Run a hand through your hair calmly."

Emmeryn slouched down so her head was below most of the strangers around them. She ran a hand through her hair naturally.

They walked for another minute on full alert before Mark said, "Gone. I think he was hoping we'd run. Not very good at his job. We're safe."

Stefan nodded, "We're almost there."

They walked a few more city blocks before Stefan turned to a coffee shop that was closed for the night. That alone was a giveaway to someone who was looking. He knocked on the door.

One knock.

Wait.

Three knocks.

Four Knocks.

And for the password.

"Seven. Four. Thirteen," Stefan calmly said.

The door opened and Kris was standing there with his gun in his hand. He chuckled and let them in.

While Mark started harassing Kris about paying his side of the bet, Stefan grabbed a phone and dialed the agency. Someone needed to get going on tracking down the killer before he got too far.

Stefan knew just the team to call.

* * *

YIA Headquarters   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius sighed. Usually he got longer than a week between jobs. It was like an unspoken rule, Stefan didn't want his agents constantly in the field.

But when someone shot an ambassador, especially a Ylissean-Plegian one, then things were serious.

The six team members sat at a rectangular table without talking. All of them were wondering what had happened that pulled them back into the field so quickly. It couldn't be a normal situation.

Henry and Cordelia walked into the conference room. Both looked tired, like they had been working all night. And they very likely could have. It was a common thing to do.

"I'm sure Agent Faraday has told you what happened from when we contacted him, but it can't hurt to repeat," Henry said. Gaius could tell the man wasn't up for any crow jokes today. "Seventeen hours ago, the Exalt and the ambassador were traveling in Plegia City after a meeting with Plegia's king. However, on their way back to the airport the ambassador was assassinated. Currently, we can see no real CAWs for the assassination." Henry chuckled despite the situation. "But as of now, we don't know if this was intended to be the Exalt's assassination, but Director Gerrard and his team have the Exalt's protection under control."

There was a knock on the door and all eyes darted to said door. It opened and a young man walked through holding a file folder. He was followed by a taller man with purple hair and a monocle.

"Mr. Talbot? Ms. Shaw? Here's the file you wanted," said the short man fumbling over his words.

Cordelia nodded approvingly while Henry turned to the team, "This is Ricken Adler, he's our trainee."

"Another one? What happened to that last intern?" Virion chuckled.

"She quit. Something about starting to see assassins around every corner," Henry shrugged with a chuckled. "I guess she didn't like the paranoia."

Cordelia turned to the other man while taking the file folder from Ricken, "Sir, what brings you down here?"

The man smiled, "I was just going to wish our newest team here luck. After all, this is where the danger starts to get real." He turned to the six people sitting at the farther end of the table. "I am Canas, it is a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise," Frederick said and the other five said similar responses.

"I also came to say that Lord Caverly is on his way, he wants to speak with his sister's team," Canas said. With one last smile, he bid the team good luck and departed.

"Why is Chrom Caverly coming to see us?" Anna whispered to Gaius.

"Probably has something to do with his sister. And he is training to become a SHEPHERD," Gaius shrugged.

"He is? And they don't just take him on the spot?" Anna said with surprise. "He  _is_ royalty."

"That's not how Green works. We're all here because Green was impressed by us, and he doesn't really want royalty in our ranks if he can help it, so he's making Chrom Caverly work really hard so he'll be ready. Princess was an exception. She impressed him," Gaius said as Cordelia began to talk.

"We have an agent in Plegia City who will be helping you track down the assassin and who hired him or her. She says she has obtained crucial information to the whereabouts of the killer, information she has to deliver in person," Cordelia said, saying the last part with a hint of distaste. Cordelia slid the file folder across the table to Gaius.

The Mastermind opened it and said, "Lucia Devereau, Grifter and Sleeper Agent? Location, Plegia City." He closed the folder and nodded, "We'll need fake IDs to get across the border, and since this is Plegia we're going to, extra IDs wouldn't hurt in case some of ours are burned."

Cordelia nodded, "It can be arranged. You're plane tickets are in there including more details of your mission. All equipment can be taken from one of our safehouses."

Gaius nodded, "Is that all?"

"One more thing," said a new, deeper voice.

The Crew turned to see Chrom Caverly in the doorway with two bodyguards. Gaius, Virion and Frederick all stood at attention quickly. Anna and Morgan caught on and followed suit while Lissa walked forward and hugged her brother.

Chrom smiled and returned the hug. After he released his sister, he turned to Gaius. A moment passed before Chrom said, "Can I trust you to protect my sister?"

Gaius nodded, "Sir, I am one of the best. Nothing will happen to her while I'm alive."

Chrom nodded, "I hope you catch that assassin. Good luck, Agent Faraday." Chrom turned to go and motioned to his bodyguards, "Sully, Kjelle, let's go."

The three left and the Crew looked at each other with not a little bit of confusion. It was a brief and strange visit.

But they didn't dwell on anything, because they had a plane to catch.

* * *

YPD Headquarters   
Leila Gryfflet

Leila breathed slowly while stepping out of the car that Matthew had parked in the YPD lot. She had fortunately made a quick recovery from her gunshot wound, but the doctor had strictly forbid strenuous physical activity, or rather physical activity entirely for that matter.

"You okay?" Matthew said worriedly. He always worried about her. Though given his naturally carefree personality, Leila supposed he had to worry about something.

Leila leaned on him and held his hand as they walked slowly, "I'm okay. I'm glad to be out of that stuffy hospital."

"Are you sure you should be returning to work so quickly?" Matthew said, the worry still evident in his voice.

"Matthew. I'm fine," Leila let out a laugh. The sun was shining, the air was fresh, what could there be to worry about? "I just want to be back an adjusting. Stahl needs my mind more than my field skills. And I hate doing nothing."

"You're not fine, but I guess you have a point," Matthew sighed. "Just…be careful, okay?"

Leila smiled serenely and nodded. With that, the two continued walking to the main doors.

"Did you tell them I was coming back today?" Leila asked.

Matthew shook his head, "Nope. I know how you like surprises, giving and receiving."

"The nonviolent kind at least," Leila said with a smirk.

The two detectives opened the main doors. Actually, Matthew opened them for Leila, like a gentleman.

Leila was greeted by many welcome backs. She smiled and thanked them. Naga, had she missed the people. Hospitals were so…monotone.

As the approached the conference room that Stahl had taken over as their 'Team Room,' Leila turned to Matthew, "What is that HBI agent like?"

Matthew shrugged, "He hasn't really done much yet, so I'll let you be the judge of him. Ready?"

Leila nodded and Matthew walked ahead and opened the door. Leila walked in nonchalantly.

Heather and Mia immediately jumped up and ran to her ready to give her a hug. Only when the caught the expression of Matthew did they let up a bit and both of them hugged her not nearly as hard as they would have. It probably would have hurt. A lot.

Stahl nodded, "Good to have you back Leila."

Leila turned to the last man in the room, "You must be Legault." She held out her hand for him to shake.

He took her hand and returned the handshake, "I'm surprised to see you walking about."

Leila shrugged, "It was just two bullets."

Legault chuckled and settled back down into his chair.

"It's a good thing you're back," Stahl said. Leila saw the file folder in front of her boss. Stahl handed her a muffin. "We have a case. An assassination, and we'll need your mind to crack this one."


	6. The Big Bang Job: Part II

The Big Bang Job

Part II

Plegia City: Airport   
Anna Cassidy

Anna hated airplanes.

Yes, they were convenient. They allowed for travel across large ranges, which in the business world was very important. The faster gold traveled, the better.

Perhaps she should make a correction. Anna hated  _riding on_ airplanes.

They were so stuffy! The Grifter wasn't fond of the idea of sitting next to people in close quarters for several long hours, even if she knew them well. It wasn't like she could walk around and sell things on an airplane either (She had tried that. But then came turbulence).

So all in all, she was happy when they touched down to the ground and she escaped the plane.

She may or may not have kissed the ground.

"I never imagined that you'd be claustrophobic," Virion said with raised eyebrows.

_I'd really like to strangle him with his cravat._

"I will beat you," Anna said, taking deep breaths.

Lucky for her, the YIA car they had was a van. And Anna rode the whole way with the windows open.

* * *

Plegia City: Apartment Complex   
Anna Cassidy

"Is this it?" Frederick asked as he parked the van. Frederick seemed to have taken his assignment of designated driver with enthusiasm. Though he did demand the car be perfectly clean at all times. Something Gaius learned the hard way. There was something about neatness that Gaius didn't understand. Throwing a multitude of candy wrappers on the ground wasn't the way to go.

They stood in front of a ten story building. It was a fairly wealthy apartment complex, which made sense for Lucia to live in. Not only was she a YIA Sleeper agent, but she was a Grifter. And Grifters invented the art of conning. Money was never a problem for them.

"Yup Freddy Bear, she's on the top floor," Gaius said glancing at the address written on his hand in his untidy scrawl. "But we don't need to all go up there, so me and Red will be heading up there. You four wait in the van. We'll be back in a few minutes."

Frederick and Virion nodded, and Lissa and Morgan scowled, but nodded just the same.

The Grifter and the Mastermind walked up the stairs to the door that led to the apartment building. Silence enveloped them as they walked up the many staircases to the top floor.

"Red, there's a chance that Lucia's going to try to shoot us," Gaius said suddenly as the got to the top floor. They stood behind a potted plant.

"…Why?" Anna asked.

"Well, in the business, it's good to have paranoia. Every agent gets it," Gaius said. "Two random people come to your door, chances are they're there to kill you."

"Is that why you have three locks on your bedroom door?" Anna asked with a slight smirk. Not that that could stop her.

"No, that's to protect my candy. The shotgun, two rifles, and five pistols hidden around the house are my paranoia," Gaius said sheepishly running a hair through his hair and adjusting his headband.

"…And where did you manage to hide those?" Anna asked sharply, finger on her chin.

Gaius laughed nervously, "Um…around?"

"I will find those Gaius Faraday. I won't have guns hidden around my shop!" Anna poked Gaius in the side angrily.

"Crivens Red! Only the shotgun is hidden in the actual shop! And um, the grenade," Gaius muttered the last part. But not quietly enough.

"What is a grenade doing in my shop?" Anna said with an overlay of false sweetness.

Gaius thought for a moment, then said, "Well, if a group of people were to burst into the shop to rob us, then I could trigger the switch that's wired to the grenade and it'd blow them up. I have a few friends in the police department that could fake the evidence that the grenade was the criminal's. Misfire, it commonly happens with the brand I have."

There was a very tense silence that could have been cut with a knife. Then, "You have a plan that involves blowing up my shop?"

Gaius was now beginning to fear for his life, "That's only in some scenarios. Most don't end up being that extreme."

" _Most!?"_

"Wow! Look at the time! We need to get moving!" Gaius said panicked. He promptly walked toward Lucia's apartment and knocked on the door in an effort to save himself.

Anna walked up beside Gaius and stood next to him (Taking extra care to step on his foot. Hard.) Gaius winced.

After about thirty seconds, Gaius tried knocking again. This time, the door opened after a few moments.

A tall woman with long blue opened the door. She looked at them carefully as if examining every bit of their appearance before saying, "Can I help you?"

Anna glanced at Gaius discretely. Did he see what she saw? The woman was tense, sweat covered her forehead. She was nervous. And the way she stood, favoring her right leg made it look like her left leg hurt. She was wearing a white sweatshirt that was rumpled in the wrong places. And lastly, her hair did not fit the description of what this woman seemed to be. It was tangled and messy. Not neat and controlled like a Grifter's should be.

It was a Grifter's nightmare. So many tells pointing at the same thing. This woman was not okay. Something was happening, or happened.

"Hello! Sorry to bother you," Gaius said, adopting a friendly nervous tone with a wide smile while tapping his foot in a haphazard pattern. "It's just that me and my wife here, we're new to the building-"

_Wife!?_

"-and well, I think we've taken a wrong turn. Could you maybe point us in the right direction? We have an important meeting to prepare for. Apartment thirteen?"

The woman smiled faintly, tapping on the door distractedly, "It's three doors down to the right. This is number ten."

"Thank you!" Gaius said with a wide smile. He began tapping his foot happily. Then he lowered his voice a tad, "Just curious, how safe is this place? The man who rented this apartment out said it was safe, but one resident to another, how safe is it?"

The blue haired woman chuckled, "It's safe, the couple across the hall sometimes are noisy, but that's as close as it gets to disturbances."

Gaius flashed another smile, "Brilliant. I'd hate to have to worry about someone roughing me or Anna up." Anna saw the woman's faint smile droop slightly before going back up. "Well, thanks for the help! If you ever need help, you know where we are, just knock and ask! We'll be happy to help!"

It took Anna the entire discussion to understand what Gaius was doing. To be fair, he probably had a lot of experience. But when Anna saw his foot tapping, she realized what he was doing.

The woman nodded, her eyebrows had furled though, "No problem, I'll let you know if I ever need help moving a thing or four."

Gaius smirked and stopped tapping his foot, "Pleasure meeting you! What did you say your name was?"

"My name is Lucia," she smiled faintly and closed the door slowly.

Gaius waited a moment, then turned to Anna and whispered frantically, "Agent Lucia's held up in there with four armed intruders. Probably work for the same people that had Innes killed. She needs help, and we're going to help."

"How the  _hell_  did you get all that?" Anna said, surprised.

Gaius smirked triumphantly, "I noticed you saw my foot tapping. Did you see Lucia's hand tapping on the side of the door? A bit of speedy Morse Code going on Red. Us thieves need to master nonverbal communication. Giving away your position with verbal communication isn't a good thing to do."

"Should we get the others?" Anna asked.

"No time. You saw how she looked," Gaius frowned. "We may not have much time."

The Mastermind walked toward the door and slowly twisted the handle. Lucia had left it unlocked. Probably a sign to show she needed their help.

Gaius opened the door slightly, took a deep breath, and burst through it with a dive roll. Anna peeked through and was surprised at what she saw.

The four men inside all looked immediately toward the door as Gaius shot the nearest one in the head with his silenced handgun he'd pulled out when Anna wasn't looking. Lucia grabbed the man who held a gun to her head and kicked him between the legs. Gaius quickly shot the other two with dead on shots to the head as Lucia broke her captor's neck.

It had taken about five seconds.

"I'm glad you got here when you did," Lucia said tiredly. She was in worse shape than she let on. "They were professional interrogators. And in five minutes, I'd most likely be dead."

"Us SHEPHERDs need to stick together, it was no problem," Gaius said, helping her up. "But this place isn't safe, we need to get moving."

"Agreed, I trust Stefan sent you?" Lucia said shakily as she stood up from her hold over the now dead captor.

"Yep. I'm Gaius Faraday, and this is Anna Cassidy. The rest of our team is down stairs," Gaius motioned for her to follow.

Lucia Devereau stopped after stepping out of the door way. She shook her head and pulled a gun out on Gaius, "I can't trust you, Agent Faraday. Believe me, I know all the tricks in the book, and this is easily one of them. How do I know you're who you say you are? Lots of people could be pretending to be the famous Agent Faraday."

Gaius' eyes widened and he took a step backward, his hand clenching his pistol, "And how can I prove it to you?"

"Tell me something the real Agent Faraday would know. This is my first time meeting you, but I do know quite a lot about you," Lucia said with steel in her voice.

Anna watched as Gaius glared at Lucia before saying, "I guess you could say the current state of the world is my fault. Had I been a better Agent, then we wouldn't be here right now. Satisfied?"

Lucia looked at him long and hard, "Alright Agent Faraday. Let's go meet the rest of your team." She put down the gun and began to limp out of the room.

* * *

Plegia City: Safehouse   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius opened the door to the safehouse with the key he had been entrusted with (Letting Anna walk in first, of course. Always the gentleman.)

The café was one of their less secure safehouses. But even it was laced with countless security measures. On the outside it looked abandoned, and no one ever stopped by to see why. YIA made sure of that.

And Gaius was slightly surprised to see a familiar face in the dark café. The Mastermind couldn't think of a reason Mark Strife would be there.

After greeting the green clad Grifter, Gaius asked him the reason of his attendance. Mark replied with a sheepish grin, "Well…I kinda pissed Stefan off and embarrassed Emmeryn. So you could say it's punishment. But I'm only here to help you work out a plan."

The six team members plus one and Mark Strife sat down at the tables in the café. Mark turned towards Lucia, "So apparently you have information that can only be exchanged in person." His voice showed how he disapproved of the idea of meeting in person.

Lucia nodded, "I know who killed Innes Wellington."

Frederick bent forward, more alert, "So it was not an attempt on the Exalt's life?"

Lucia shook her head, "No. Innes had uncovered something important. Something a crimelord in Plegia City didn't want to be found out."

"And that is…?" Morgan prompted impatiently. Gaius smirked proudly in his mind.

"Robin Sterling is going to have PSI inside his pocket," Lucia said in a low voice. "The Plegian Security Institution has always been loyal to the King, Gangrel. But in order to get blackmail material on him, Sterling enlisted Joshua Cross. Now Innes Wellington discovered this, and has tried to secretly take down Cross. And that forced Joshua to retaliate."

"When you say 'going to have,' what does that mean?" Lissa asked, puzzled.

Mark Strife piped up, "It means that Sterling doesn't have the information from Cross yet, right? So if all goes to his plan, Sterling will have PSI on his side. And that'll make everything in the intelligence community much harder to accomplish."

Lucia nodded, "Innes went to several lengths to try and kill Cross, but he's a very hard man to kill. He even went as far to hire the Fireman, Volke."

Virion perked up, "How is Joshua alive then, fair lady?"

Of every assassin and contract killer, there were few who never failed. One was Kellam Anderson, and he was by far the best. The only one who could even stand a chance against him was Volke, and perhaps one other.

"Teaming up with Sterling means the best protection. And that means Kellam Anderson," Lucia said grimly. "Kellam Anderson is the best, Volke is the only one who could even stand a chance against him. But Volke isn't stupid enough to try and take out Anderson. He didn't take the contract."

"Did Cross send those men after you?" Gaius asked, piecing together the puzzle.

Lucia nodded, "He somehow found out that I'm with the YIA and trying to take him down. I infiltrated his organization a few months ago. I was sent in after it became known that he had contact with Sterling."

"How did Innes find all this out?" Frederick asked.

Lucia raised an eyebrow, "Innes Wellington was HBI. He was on a mission from Director Maribelle. He and I worked together for brief periods of time."

"So what now? Do we just kill him?" Morgan asked. She seemed slightly lost, but Gaius didn't really blame her.

Mark Strife shook his head, "Can't do that squirt, Cross might've told someone else the information. We need to interrogate him to find out who knows, then systematically find out who else knows."

"That seems like a lot of stuff to do. Is it even possible to get everyone," Morgan said.

Mark chuckled, "You find Cross, I'll do the rest. Well, I'll get Kris to do the interrogating. Now gather around, I know where Cross'll be tonight, and you'll need some important information I have…"

* * *

Plegia City: HBI Safehouse   
Leila Gryfflet

Leila looked around the safe house garage. The police team had come here to examine the car that the Exalt and Innes Wellington had been inside of during the murder. Apparently HBI had stashed it here for them to look at. It was an odd feeling realizing that they were called in to investigate an international affair like this.

"What do you think?" Matthew muttered while Leila inspected the glass of the windows with her pocket magnifying glass.

"This is  _bullet proof glass,"_ she said with slight amazement. "There aren't many rifles that could pierce this. I can't even think of one offhand."

"So…?" Matthew said with a slight chuckle.

"So if we can find out what gun shot Innes, we can figure out who killed him," Leila said with certainty.

"Makes sense," Stahl said. "We'll know soon, I'm bringing in an expert to help us."

"What's he an expert in?" Legault said curiously.

"Everything. And sorry about him in advance, most people want to kill him after meeting him," Stahl said sheepishly. "But we're out of our league here. This is top notch HBI business, and we really don't qualify for that yet."

"Y'know Stahl, it couldn't hurt to have some faith in us," Heather said, a little insulted.

"On a crime of this scale, we can't afford mistakes. I trust this man, I've seen him work before. Give him ten minutes," Stahl said.

"Why? What's he going to do in ten minutes?" asked Heather.

"What indeed?" came a new voice.

Six heads turned toward the door to see a tall man with red hair. He had a rather arrogant expression on his face.

"Who're you?" Heather said after a moment.

"Alvis. Expert investigator," he said and walked right up to the closest team member which was Stahl. "Hmm, Mr. Donivore… you've got an interesting secret. I can see it from the way you stand there, hand in your pocket holding something important. You should really tell everyone, they might hate you for it if you don't if it's what I think it is, which it is."

Without letting Stahl reply, Alvis moved on to the next person: Matthew. With a quick glance Alvis shook his head, "You're rather boring aren't you? Don't know what she sees in you." Alvis pointed to Leila. "But you should hurry up before she gets impatient." Matthew's face turned red. Alvis moved to Leila, "Oh, you bad girl you. You've got a lot of skeletons in your closet. Dark secrets you want to forget huh?"

Alvis laughed and took one look at Heather and Mia and laughed harder, "You two, how do they not even notice!? It's so obvious!" Alvis quickly regained his composure and turned to Legault and shook his head, "No. Just…no. I don't like you kinds of people."

"Sorry, who are you?" Matthew asked with extreme puzzlement, his face returning to a normal shade.

"Alvis O'Hare, consulting investigator. I notice everything. For example, you're this team's expert on bombs. You want to know how I know that? It's because in your left pocket there's wire cutters. Why would a detective have those? They wouldn't. Thus, bomb disposal, only possibility."

"But I might need to cut wire fences," Matthew said.

Alvis shook his head, "Nope, you'd climb over the fence. That's why you wear flexible shoes and clothes that wouldn't get caught on a fence."

Alvis abruptly ignored them all after that and turned toward the car and began examining it very carefully. Leila turned toward Stahl and whispered, "Why is he here?"

"In five minutes he'll tell us what is would take us days to figure out," Stahl whispered back. "We need to act quickly on this case."

Sure enough, five minutes later Alvis started chuckling. He stood up from his crouched position by the back seats of the limo. "I pity you," he said, "You've got quite the killer to track down. Kellam Anderson could kill you all in a heartbeat. Probably without even thinking about it."

Leila saw Stahl stiffen next to her. "And how do you know that?" Leila asked, skeptical.

Alvis smirked, "The only sniper rifle that can pierce bullet proof glass is the Gungnir, and of all of the assassins who own one, only Kellam Anderson could shoot a man right below the ear at a distance of five hundred feet. Balance of probability, he's your killer. Might as well give up."

"And you got all that from looking at a car?" Legault said, surprised.

"It was easy. And now I have to go. I have more important commitments to attend to," Alvis waved his hand in dismissal as he left abruptly.

The six team members stood still, not really sure what to do. "Sorry, he does that. He comes in, looks at you an tells you the things you're hiding, investigates and then leaves." Stahl turned to Heather and Mia. Alvis' comment piqued his intrest, "What did he mean when he talked about you two?"

Heather wrapped an arm around Mia as the purple haired woman shyly said, "We're…in a relationship."

* * *

Plegia City: Back Alley   
Alvis O'Hare

"So, you're the one who is taking the fall for Anderson's contract?" Alvis raised an eyebrow. Even the gun pressed to his face didn't stop his deductions.

Joshua Cross frowned, "I'm not taking a fall. I'm taking credit."

Alvis chuckled, "You won't survive through next week. You'll be dead before you know it. YIA is rarely so sloppy. You've signed a death warrant for working with Sterling."

Joshua pulled the hammer back on his magnum, "I think you're the one who'd better be watching out for his life. You've given too much away to the police, and now I'll have to take care of them."

Alvis chuckled. He was pressed up against a wall, literally and figuratively. He already was dead, soon to be at least. "I know you've got that Devereau girl thinking you did it. That'll lead to your demise."

Joshua pressed the gun up against Alvis' forehead. "Sterling won't let me go. I'm too valuable."

"Tell that to all of Sterling's other 'valuable' assets," smirked Alvis.

Joshua had enough, he pulled the trigger and Alvis fell to the ground, dead.

The crimelord just shook his head, "They always meddle. Why do they always have to mess with my business?"

* * *

?   
Robin Sterling

Robin looked out over the city, a bottle of beer in his hand, "Joshua's fell for it then?"

Kellam nodded, "He thinks you want that information. But having PSI on your side is worthless. Despite their…bad qualities, they wouldn't be very useful. They're too loyal to their King. YIA will take Cross out of the picture for us."

Robin took a sip of the beer, "And that'll make them even more confident. And give us an opening for Pandemonium to slip in and control more of Plegia City since someone will have to take control. Tell me, when I was bombing that embassy a few months back, did you notice what I noticed?"

Kellam thought for a moment. That act of terrorism was important in many different ways, but Kellam didn't know which Sterling referred to. In some ways, it was the beginning of Robin's master plan.

Robin continued as if he didn't expect Kellam to answer, "There was  _one_  YIA agent there. Erk Ivalice. He was one of the best Hackers I've ever seen, Pandemonium has nothing on him. Stefan put him in there confident he'd be enough. But now Stefan knows who I've got with me, and he's learned his lesson. And he also knows that Plegian authorities think Ivalice was responsible for the bombing. It won't be long before the story of how Erk Ivalice went rogue goes up. Then tensions will mount and we'll be dealing with another war soon."

"What does that mean for us?" Kellam asked.

"It means Stefan is beginning to take us seriously. Usually ten percent of his agents are focused on me. But he's got half his agents on my tail now. So there a few options that I need to decide between. I can go for the YIA List next, or I can tell Walhart to begin his gambit. Or perhaps it's time to show Agent Faraday that he can't count on his friends. Cross is no longer a priority target. You're to remove him from your hit list. I'll send you details on who to kill next."

Robin took another sip from his drink, "But I'll worry about that later. Right now, Faraday will take Cross down. Get the team in position. Pandemonium is going to take full advantage of this, tell him to start his game. And go send Ishtar in, we need to address the WIA threat. They took me by surprise last time. And it won't happen again." Sterling felt his hand tighten on the guncane while a smirk passed over his mouth.


	7. The Big Bang Job: Part III: Finale

The Big Bang Job  
Part III: Finale

HBI Safehouse   
Leila Gryfflet

"I feel kind of useless, you know?" Matthew said with a yawn.

Leila nodded, silently agreeing. They had all seen Kellam Anderson back at Solution. Each and every one of them knew there was nothing they could do. Leila was pretty sure none of them wanted to even try.

"It's a different playing field with people like him," Leila said quietly. "We've been thrown into the field without knowing the rules or the players. We'd be killed very quickly."

Matthew nodded and changed the subject, "How's the wound?"

Leila shrugged, "Fine. It doesn't hurt anymore."

Matthew looked like he wanted to say something, but he was interrupted by the opening of the door.

A woman walked in with poise. She stood up straight and looked as if she demanded their attention. She was much unlike her two companions, who both didn't seem to care much about appearances. Both looked very lax and bored.

Legault snapped to attention and saluted, "Ma'am!"

The woman nodded to him and said, "At ease." She then looked around at the team and introduced herself, "My name is Maribelle Adalric, Director of the HBI. This is Donnel Winchester and Volug Collins. The former is one of my agents, and the latter is from YIA."

Stahl pointed to the nearest person to him, "That's Mia, the woman next to her is-"

"I know who you all are," Maribelle waved a hand dismissively. "Enough chit chat, we have important business to discuss, don't we?"

Stahl nodded, "What are we to do about Kellam Anderson?"

Volug began to laugh slightly behind Maribelle. The Director shot him a look and turned back to Stahl with a tired look on her face, "There's nothing we  _can_ do. People like Kellam Anderson, they put our best agents to shame with their skill. Bringing him down is the YIA and the WIA's business."

"There's nothing you can do?" Leila found herself saying. HBI had to be able to do  _something._

The woman glanced at her and nodded, "I will have these two," she pointed at the two agents, "tail him for the YIA. They both never seem to die, and should be able to escape."

"Now, ma'am, are ya sure we should be doin' that? 'Cause I'm not so sure me 'n Volug can handle that there guy," Donnel said. "We're not as good as ya say, ma'am."

Volug chuckled and spoke with a strange accent that made him hard to understand, "We'll be fine Donny. Let's get to work."

The two men left and Maribelle sighed, dropping her composure somewhat, "I sincerely apologize Stahl. Your team was supposed to be useful. And there hasn't even been the right case for you to handle. How about you and your team go back to your home soil and handle something local next?"

Stahl nodded after some hesitation, "Sounds like a plan…ma'am."

The two exchanged an extended look that Leila couldn't define, but then broke the connection.

_What was that about?_

* * *

?   
Donnel Winchester

"Whelp! This here seems like th' place!" Donny said with confidence.

The two agents stood directly in front of a piece of shit apartment. The kind not even in debt college students wanted to live in.

"Donnel my friend, just because it is a shady place does not mean that it is the right place," Volug said quickly through his thick accent.

"Say, where'd ya grow up? I can't say I'm familiar with that there accent," Donny said, walking up to the abandoned apartment building and ignoring Volug's comment.

"Rural Ferox. My village spoke the old tongue there. This new language…is confusing at times," Volug said.

"Hah!" Donny shouted with a smile. The door was open! "This here's a friendly place!"

Donny adjusted the baseball cap on his head so it was on backwards and walked inside.

The two carefully made their way upstairs to the third floor as according to what their asset said. Third floor, and since it was one apartment per floor, third apartment. Kellam had been seen going into it.

To a normal agent, that would have been a dead giveaway. No one  _sees_ Kellam Anderson.

Volug kicked the door down when they got to it with lots of noise. Neither of them really were what you'd call 'Top Agents.'

The two pulled out their handguns and walked slowly into the silent apartment. And…

There was no one there.

Donny sighed, "Dang nabit! I thought this'd be my time t' shine!"

Volug walked over to one of the tables and picked up a piece of paper. It wasn't dusty, like the rest of the apartment.

"What in tarnation is that?" Donny said as he walked over to look at it. He and Volug read it at the same time.

_Love and Kisses._

_-Anderson_

Donny was in the middle of puzzling it out when Volug tackled him to the floor. Half a second later the window shattered by a bullet.

What had the Director said? They never seemed to die. They were too lucky.

"Scatter Donnel! Make haste!" Volug shouted. And they ran for the door.

* * *

Plegia City: Rooftops   
Kellam Anderson

"Did I… _miss?!"_  Kellam exclaimed angrily. Had he been holding something breakable, it would have been thrown off the roof.

Sure enough, the two bumbling idiots had escaped.

"Gotta be fucking kidding me. I kill the best that exist and two failure excuses of agents get away?" Kellam angrily took apart his rifle to put in his carrying case.

"At least no one will believe they got away from me. No one would trust the boast of crappy agents like that," he grumbled. "Now I'll have to take a detour sometime and shut them up."

* * *

Plegia City: Cross Casino   
Morgan Cassidy

Apparently, Mr. Cross was quite the gambler. Anyone had to be to own such a big and…flashy casino.

It was the typical casino, neon lights, bright flashy signs, tons of cars in the parking lot, etc.

"Everyone know where to be?" Gaius said, popping in a piece of candy.

Everyone nodded, and they began to scatter to where the plan dictated they be. Gaius pulled Morgan aside.

"Morgan, how good are you at being scary?" he said with a slight smile.

Morgan grinned wolfishly.

* * *

Cross Casino: Basement   
Virion Chandler

Virion and Lissa sat in the basement of the casino, several computer screens in front of them. Lissa typed away while Virion issued orders over the com link.

Thankfully Virion hadn't needed to kill anyone, as since the basement was deserted. Just Lissa's computer screens lit up the room.

"Virion? What was Lucia talking about earlier? Neuro Linguistics Reprogramming was it?" Lissa asked amidst the typing. That girl was good at multi-tasking.

Virion nodded, "It's something Grifters use all the time. Our friend Lucia is very good at it though. And so is Anna. To be frank, every Grifter is."

Lissa nodded, "But what exactly is it?"

Virion paused for a moment, thinking. Then he said, "It's all about anchoring an emotion to an action or process. You know how when you do something, like brush your teeth, you might think the pain when you got a cavity filled, yes?"

At Lissa's nod, Virion continued, "And that makes you brush your teeth even harder because you can remember the pain. Now what Anna is going to do is anchor the feeling of happiness to Cross drinking his wine. Watch, she's about to do it."

* * *

Cross Casino: Main Floor   
Anna Cassidy

Anna walked behind Lucia Devereau a few steps. For the con to work, they couldn't know each other.

The main floor of the casino was very richly decorated. Of course, Cross was a very wealthy crimelord. And he valued gambling, so it made sense.

Lucia led Anna to the table in the middle of the room. But more precisely, she led Anna to Joshua Cross.

"Mr. Cross, Ms. Cassidy asked to see you," Lucia said with a formal tone. Cross regarded her with a sidelong gaze for a moment, then turned his attention to Anna with a smile.

"Ms. Cassidy, it is a pleasure to meet you," Cross said with a warm smile.

"Mr. Cross, I must insist you call me Anna. Formality isn't something I'm fond of. It may be good in my business, but not on the side," Anna giggled.

Cross chuckled, "Then you must likewise call me Joshua. I must say I'm not a fan of formality either."

Joshua glanced at his guards and then waved them away. He did the same with Lucia after giving her a brief glance. "Now what brings you here Anna? A business proposition?"

Anna shook her head, "I made a killing today. I'm here to relax, have some fun. Been a while since I had some," She suggestively winked with the latter statement.

Joshua smiled and gestured for one of the waiters to bring them some wine. "Well, I would be a horrible host if I turned down a beautiful woman such as yourself."

"I am glad that you don't seem like a horrible host," Anna grinned. The waiter brought them their wine. Joshua took a glass and sipped it.

_Show time._

As he drank, Anna smiled a fuller smile, the kind that made people smile themselves. The kind that made anyone happy. She also crossed her legs.

"So what does owning a casino all entail? Is it very profitable?" Anna said as she sipped her own wine.

For the next hour, Anna and Joshua chatted at the table on the main floor. All the while, Anna made sure to smile her signature smile when ever Joshua took a drink and at the same time she would always uncross, and recross her legs.

Whenever Joshua's wine glass ran empty, Anna was always ready to order him another. The way he took it without complaint told her she was doing a good job.

Now for the next phase.

Anna's cellphone began to ring. As planned, Gaius was calling her. Anna picked it up, with an apologetic look towards Joshua, and Gaius said,  _"Begin phase two. Reel in the fish."_

Anna held her hand up to the speaker of the phone and leaned forward to Joshua, "It's my ex-boyfriend. I'm going to have to deal with this. He's such an asshole, always calling me. Tell you what, I'm in room three-two-seven, drop if you're bored." Anna winked and like a cat slinked away.

" _So I'm an asshole, huh?"_ Gaius chuckled.

"Maybe. Though we haven't dated, so you can't be my ex-boyfriend," Anna chuckled, maintaining an unhappy face despite her amusement.

" _Alright. Head to your room, Red. You know what to do,"_  Gaius hung up.

Anna continued on, still holding the phone up to her ear.

* * *

Cross Casino: Main Floor   
Frederick Quinn

Frederick straightened his white bowtie as he walked toward the mark. Joshua Cross was just finishing off his glass of wine. It was good that Cross was such a heavy drinker. And that he could hold his liquor.

And Frederick put a bit of powder in each glass that made it addictive. So that could be why he kept drinking the glasses as they came.

Details.

"More wine, sir?" Frederick said with a butler's posture.

Cross nodded and reached for the glass on the serving tray. As he did that, Frederick reached his hand over to Cross' waist and lifted his smartphone off of him.

Frederick walked away, phone in hand. Cross wouldn't notice it missing for at least a few minutes. Hopefully.

As Lissa had told him, he plugged in a small device to its charging outlet. "Lissa, do your thing," he said calmly into the com link.

" _Aye-aye, cap'n!"_

What Lissa was doing, was disabling the security measures on the phone. Then she was going to clone it to a phone on her end, and reinstall the security to make it look as though it hadn't been tampered with.

"You have maybe two minutes. Three if we're lucky. Alcohol will only do so much, after all, we didn't want him utterly drunk," Frederick warned. "He's paranoid about that phone."

Lissa didn't respond, she was probably too distracted by her hacking.

One minute passed…

Then two…

Three…

"Lissa, finish it!" Frederick whispered urgently.

" _Done! Go!"_

Frederick pulled the device out of the charging port and walked very quickly back toward the mark, weaving in and out of the many people.. As he approached Cross, he saw the man move a hand subconsciously to his back pocket of his suit pants. When he didn't feel his phone, he immediately perked up.

" _Frederick, fumble!"_ Gaius said urgently through the com link.

A fumble. Would it work?

Cross began looking around his chair for his phone. Frederick finally arrived at his destination and bent down by the chair, "Sir, did you drop this?" Out of Joshua's vision, he set the phone on the ground and after a quick moment picked it up and held it out to his 'boss.'

Frederick was no Grifter, his acting skills were severely lacking. There was a reason he always played the butler. Would Cross buy it? Would he catch on? Would he-

"Thank you. What is your name?" Cross said, pocketing the phone. He kept his hand near it though.

"Quinn, sir."

Frederick mentally slapped himself. Why didn't he think of a fake name!?

"Thank you Quinn. Now go fetch me another glass of wine," Cross grinned.

"Of course sir."

Crisis averted.

* * *

Cross Casino: Main Floor   
Virion Chandler

Virion straightened his cravat. "My move," he whispered with a slight smile.

Virion approached Joshua Cross and sat down where Anna had sat an hour or two ago. He gave Cross a smile.

Cross eyed him warily. The alcohol hadn't destroyed his senses yet, "Can I help you?"

Virion smiled, "Why yes, my good man. I'm looking for my significant other, Anna Cassidy. And since it's your job to know everything that goes on here, I was hoping you could tell me where she was."

Cross leaned forward, alert, "Significant other? You mean girlfriend?"

"If that's how you want to put it, yes," Virion shrugged.

"You're her ex-boyfriend?" Cross said, slightly angry.

Virion threw on a puzzled look, "If you want to be technical, I suppose, but she's just going through a phase. It'll work out."

Cross shook his head. He motioned to the nearest butler, "Quinn! Please take this guy somewhere out of sight. He's going to cause a disturbance, and you know we don't tolerate that, right?"

Quinn, or rather Frederick, nodded and smirked, "Come on you, let's get you somewhere…more comfortable." Frederick cracked his knuckles and grabbed Virion by the arm.

Out of his peripheral vision, Virion saw Cross get up and head to the hotel part of the casino.

_Perfect._

* * *

Cross Casino: Hotel Section   
Anna Cassidy

"Status update?" Anna said into the com link.

" _Everyone is in position. Freddy Bear is carrying Ruffles out. Freddy Bear'll double back. Distract Cross for only a short time. I'm almost ready to throw the manual switch. Buy me a minute or two if you can."_

"Got it," Anna said and went back to applying the finishing touches to her make up.

There was a knock on the door. Anna sighed, then threw on her flirtatious look and opened the door.

Joshua Cross stood there with a smirk on his face.

And a gun in his hand.

"May I come in?" Joshua said with a grin and walked in.

"What the hell are you pointing a gun at me for!?" Anna screamed.

Joshua laughed, "You thought I was so stupid, didn't you? You thought you could fool me, didn't you?"

Cross pushed Anna further into the room. Three men came in, one held Lucia in a choke hold. Another held Virion in a similar manner while the last had an unconscious Frederick.

"I've known Ms. Devereau was a traitor for a long time now. And the signs were there for me to pick up that the rest of you were working with her. I am quite observant," Joshua said confidently.

The fire alarm went off. The crimelord's body guards jumped a bit, but Joshua waved them down and spoke into a handheld radio, "They're trying to distract us. Grab the one who set it off, let the civilians get out though." Joshua motioned to the bed, "Sit down, Anna dear."

Anna sat down. Frederick was set down on the bed alongside her and his captor held a gun to his head.

"So, every HBI team is made up of six people. I have four here, one upstairs at the fire alarm and your Hacker is probably off site. I suppose I can settle for five out of six," Joshua chuckled. "That's eighty-three percent."

Another one of Cross' goons came through the door holding a beat up Gaius. He was out cold.

"Who's the Mastermind?" Joshua asked, waving his gun back a forth past the conscious people.

Knowing there'd be consequences if none of them answered, Anna raised a hand, "Me."

Cross laughed, "You should be a Grifter my dear, you're very adept at it. Now why are you gunning for me?"

Anna took a deep breath, "We're here to find out who you've told your blackmail material on Gangrel to." There was no point in lying. Not at this point.

Joshua laughed, "Wouldn't you like to know."

"Mr. Cross," came a new voice.

Joshua jerked his head back and forth, and his eyes finally settled on the TV. A redheaded woman was on the TV screen wearing sunglasses.

"Who the hell are you?" Joshua asked. He pointed the gun at the TV, but then realized it wouldn't do anything so he let it drop.

"Wouldn't you like to know," she said with a cold impersonation of Cross. "It doesn't matter Cross, I'd answer the lady's question."

Joshua laughed, "Why should I? I'd bet my favorite hat you have nothing up your sleeve."

The woman on the TV screen chuckled, "In precisely twenty seconds, you will hear an explosion. It's what I like to call a warning shot. Ten seconds."

"What are you talking about-" Cross was cut off.

_BOOM!_

An extremely loud explosion sounded not too far away. Anna felt the room shake a bit.

"Did you hear that Mr. Cross? That was the sound of your main floor exploding. Don't worry, it was very flashy. Good thing the fire alarm is going off," the woman grinned.

"You have my attention," Joshua snarled.

"I have two more bombs. One is inside your personal office. The other is inside you casino and personal vault. By the way, you should have upgraded the security, it was easy to break into. Sorry, off track. With one click of a button, I will blow all your computer data and money to bits," the woman smirked.

Joshua shook his head, "That's my physical money. I have plenty of bank accounts."

The woman, who seemed to be sitting in a chair, leaned back and chuckled, "Well, you would if I hadn't hacked and cloned your phone. Stealing your passwords and data was easy, and robbing you took one click of a button."

Joshua's eyes flared as he quickly took out his phone and began tapping the touch screen furiously. He gave a roar of outrage and shot several bullets out of his gun into the floor. "When did you…dammit, the waiter right? I should have seen that."

The woman laughed, "You crimelords are so easy to con. Everything is about the money. And you think no one will ever steal from you because 'they wouldn't dare, or else.'"

"What do you want," Cross said slowly.

"I want you to answer Anna's question. And I will warn you, I know if you're lying," she said seriously.

Joshua opened his mouth, then closed it. He turned back to the TV with a smirk, "You've forgotten something. I have powerful friends. They can restore my accounts to what they were for this information. You have no hold over me."

The redhead on the TV burst out laughing, "That implies Robin Sterling gives a shit about you. Yes, I know who he is. You think the Traitor of the YIA can be trusted? He once was the most adept agent in SHEPHERD, and look at him now. Most dangerous man in the world. Shepherd's most wanted."

"Our types stick together," Joshua said through gritted teeth.

"Since your pathetic brain can't handle it, let me put it in an analogy. You are a caterpillar, Sterling is a Hawk. He doesn't even waste time with you, he eats the people who eat you. You're nothing."

"S-shut up!" Joshua shouted.

Anna hid a smile. She always knew Morgan could be an excellent Grifter. This was her first life or death test after all.

"And one more thing," Morgan chuckled.

"What?" Cross snarled angrily.

"You should have just answered Anna's question," Morgan just shook her head. "In our business, one learns to watch their back very quickly. And you wouldn't last very long," Morgan said smugly.

Joshua Cross swore and turned around to find several men in suits pointing guns at him and his men.

"You done goofed," chuckled Mark Strife. And he fired.

* * *

?   
Robin Sterling

"Is it done?" Robin said.

Brady Jensen, more commonly known as Pandemonium, nodded, "You bet your boots it is. Plegia City is mine t' control. Not even Erk coulda stopped me."

Sterling smirked, "Excellent. Now tell me, what do you know of the SHEPHERD List?"

* * *

The Big Bang Job

Mission:  **Accomplished**


	8. The Outside Man Job

Job #3: The Outside Man

Gaius Faraday   
YIA Headquarters

"…and that wraps it up. Mark arrived as planned and right on time. Cross didn't stand a chance," Gaius finished. He leaned back in the chair. It was a comfy swivel chair.

Stefan nodded, pleased, "Excellent work. I'll send in a few agents to make sure Sterling isn't up to anything in the area. But I believe that's all."

Gaius smiled, maybe they'd get a break now. Stefan usually let teams have time off every few jobs. Being an agent wasn't exactly a walk in the park, they needed breaks often.

And then Canas suddenly burst into the room.

"Canas?" Cordelia said, puzzled. Beside her, Henry mirrored the expression. Gaius merely shrugged, he was used to Canas' antics.

"Mr. Gerrard, there's someone here to see you," Canas said darkly. He pulled down the projector sheet in the room and flipped open his laptop and clicked a few keys.

And Robin Sterling popped up on the screen with a lazy grin. He waved.

"Howdy Stefan, long time no see!" Robin laughed.

Stefan glared at the man, "What the hell are you doing Sterling?"

"Would you believe me if I said I was in the neighborhood and wanted to drop by?" Robin asked innocently.

"No."

"…You're no fun anymore Stef. What happened to the good ol' days? Me, you, Faraday, Arturian, all of us taking on the world!" Robin said. "No one could stop us back then."

"That was before you turned, Sterling. And since we're on the topic, why did you betray us? You've conveniently never told me. We were friends! We had been through so much, why!?" Stefan said angrily.

"That's for me to know, and you to never find out. …Now, recently my interest has been on what you call the SHEPHERD List," Robin said smugly.

Gaius watched as Stefan's hand twitched. Definitely not one of those good twitches.

"And for those of you who don't know," Robin glanced at the others in the room with a sly smile. "The List has all the information about every SHEPHERD currently and from the past. Each and every one of you is on it."

"This certainly is a step in a new direction. You can't honestly expect me to give it to you," Stefan said with a frown. Gaius silently agreed.

"Stef, I've been sitting in the shadows too long. It was kindness, but now I'm bored of these games," Robin Sterling said, leaning back in his chair on the computer screen stifling a yawn.

"What are you saying?" Stefan said angrily. He looked like a cat about to jump from its perch.

"I'm going to bomb a fully loaded Ylissean passenger jet in thirteen hours unless you give me the SHEPHERD List," Robin said, looking more interested in his nails that he was examining than the conversation. "And don't think of calling in tons of Agents. I'll be at the Central Ylissian Airport, Terminal One. But if I see any of your agents besides the ones in this room, I'll blow up the entire airport. So only Faraday's team, those two agents over there and yourself. Canas can stay behind. I know how he doesn't go for the field jobs."

Stefan glanced between Henry and Cordelia and said sarcastically, "Is that all?"

Sterling laughed, "No. This time you won't be going up against any of my lackeys, Stef. This time, it's me and you. Face to face. Toe to toe. I'll be out in the open. So try and stop me."

Robin's face disappeared as the screen went black.

"Shit," Stefan muttered. He ran a hand through his hair.

"Can't we stage some reason that we'd need to close the airport?" Frederick asked logically.

"No. Sterling will merely move locations then. That's how he works," Stefan said. He glanced at Gaius for agreement and Gaius nodded. "Then we'd never find him in time and innocents would die."

"Canas, you're holding down the fort here. Start finding me how many fully loaded Ylissean passenger jets are taking off in thirteen hours," Stefan ordered. "Thirteen hours will take us to midday tomorrow, the airport's busiest time."

"We need to go there now. It's an hour drive away, and we'll need time," said Cordelia. "Agreed?"

All the heads nodded.

* * *

Ylissean Central Airport: Parking Lot   
Virion Chandler   
Countdown: 11 hours, 47 minutes

It was a little after midnight. The agents gathered around the two vans they had taken to the airport. It had been a little cramped getting there, but they'd made it.

In the center of the semicircle was a computer which had Canas on it via videochat. "So there are thirteen planes taking off at the time Sterling threatened. But only seven of them are the huge Ylissean Passenger Jets, and those are probably the most predictable targets. And only three seem to be fully loaded at this time."

"Understood," Stefan said. He reached into the back of the van he had driven in and pulled out a bag full of badges. "You are all Ylissean Air Marshalls. These badges will give you access to just about everywhere. Sterling said he'd bomb a fully loaded plane, and it looks like there're three options." Stefan handed a badge to everyone. "There's nine of us, so teams of three. Each of us takes a different plane to investigate."

Canas cleared his throat, "Gaius, you take Anna and Morgan and check out plane number 221. Virion, take Frederick and Lissa with plane number 456. The rest of you have number 112. Good luck."

* * *

Ylissean Central Airport: Plane #221   
Morgan Cassidy   
Countdown: 8 hours 21 minutes

Morgan lifted the seventeenth overhead luggage storage compartment. With a sweep of her eyes, she sighed. No bomb. Though she didn't really expect to find it in such an obvious place.

Over the next half an hour, she checked the rest, as well as under every seat. All two hundred and forty three.

It wasn't like it was hard to count.

"There's nothing here Uncle G. If there's going to be a bomb, it's going to be in someone's luggage," Morgan said. That's what she would do at least. If she were an insane terrorist with a grudge that is.

" _I figured so. Green isn't having any luck either. Nor is Ruffles. Lissa?"_ Gaius said.

" _Yeah?"_

" _Go to the security room. Let us know if anyone matching Sterling's description shows up today,"_ Gaius ordered.  _"Stay there and don't let anyone go unchecked."_

Stefan spoke up,  _"I just checked the boarding list of the three planes. Because sometimes there's last minute changes to the roster. Flight 456 no longer is full. It isn't our concern anymore. It's down more than ten people."_

" _Understood,"_ came eight voices, including Morgan's.

* * *

Ylissean Central Airport: Plane #112   
Virion Chandler   
Countdown: 3 hours 9 minutes

They were running out of time.

Virion hadn't found a bomb yet, neither had any of the other eight agents.

And that meant casualties if it wasn't remedied.

Virion smiled flirtatiously at the flight attendant behind the desk for flight 112. She smiled back as Virion walked up and said, "Ma'am."

"Can I help you sir?" she asked with a small smile.

Virion glanced at her nametag. "Well, Lyre. There's a bit of a situation." He pulled his Air Marshall badge out and the woman's eyes widened. Virion then reached into his pocket for a picture. Noticing her distress, he smiled, "Don't worry, you haven't done anything. But I need you to remain calm, can you do that?"

She nodded.

Virion then showed her a picture, "This man here, is going to try and commit an act of terrorism in a few hours. I  _need_ you to tell me if you see him, okay?"

Lyre nodded, suddenly extremely nervous, "What is he going to do?"

"Bomb a plane. The moment you see him, scream. Pull the fire alarm. Just draw attention to yourself. Myself or one of my coworkers will be there," Virion assured.

She nodded, but she was beginning to lose control of her breathing.

"Hey," Virion looked her in the eye dead on. "I need you to remain calm. This man, Sterling, he'll be looking to see discomfort in you. Don't let him see you, or he might do something worse."

Lyre nodded, and Virion left to go continue scanning the bags that were coming in alongside Frederick.

* * *

Ylissean Central Airport: Plane #221   
Morgan Cassidy   
Countdown: 37 minutes

" _Guys, I found it,"_ said Frederick through the com link.

Morgan perked up. She'd just checked in with the flight attendant in front of flight 221. No sign of Sterling. Yet that is.

" _It's in a suitcase I just opened up,"_  Frederick elaborated.

Morgan immediately left the desk and began to run to the other side of the airport where flight 112 was. Morgan could diffuse bombs, that was one of her skills. Though Gaius could as well, Morgan was better. A skill she wore with pride. And one she rubbed in her uncle's face whenever possible.

Now was not the time.

But as she was running and turning a corner, she  _barely_  stopped herself from knocking over an old man wearing glasses.

"Oops! Sorry sir!" Morgan said, itching to keep running. But it was her fault, she had to make sure the man was okay. Just because Morgan was suddenly a secret agent didn't mean she had to abandon her moral code.

The man laughed, "Slow down there girl. Watch yourself, I'm fine. Now run along lassie."

Morgan smiled and kept running on.

The old man chuckled and kept walking. He passed flight 221 and continued on. The old man walked down the moving sidewalk, leaning on his cane the duration of the distance.

He had a long history of traveling, he didn't even need to look to know he was at his destination. It was muscle memory. It came with age…and experience.

The man checked his watch. He had twenty minutes. Boarding had started, but he'd be all right. So he set his eyes on the bathroom and headed there, hobbling on his cane.

It was empty, and the old man stood in front of the mirror. He ran a hand through his white hair. Then suddenly, he burst out laughing. He took off the old man glasses.

No longer leaning on the cane, he stood up straight. Perfectly, just like a young man. He set the backpack down that he had been carrying and reached a hand up to the base of his cheek. Then he grabbed and _pulled_ upward, ripping something off.

Robin Sterling smirked as he threw the mask into the garbage can. Damn useful, those things.

Sterling walked into one of the stalls with the backpack, and when he came out two minutes later, he was wearing a black suit. He always was with style.

Still holding his cane, Sterling left the bathroom. It wasn't his favorite cane, though that made him smirk. He loved new toys.

Robin looked up at the display.

Flight #456  
 **Status:**  Boarding. Full flight.

The terrorist chuckled and made his way onto the plane.

The flight attendant scanned his ticket and bid him a pleasant flight. Sterling continued through the door that led to the plane.

Robin made his way to the seat in the middle of the plane that he had booked. The plane had been lacking one person before Robin had bought the final seat. He was actually disappointed in the lack of resistance from Stefan. Either his old friend didn't know him as well as he'd thought, or they were in the process of dealing with the decoy bomb. Or his Hacker actually had fooled them into thinking the flight wasn't full.

Robin always had more than one decoy.

"This isn't even a challenge," Robin sighed. "I thought I would be actually trying. Guess I better focus on the WIA."

"Huh?" said the person whose seat was next to Robin's.

"Oh, nothing," Robin shrugged. He put his cane in the overhead compartment. Then Sterling walked back to the front of the plane and stepped back through the door that he had passed through to get on the plane calmly.

"Sir? What're you doing?" said the flight attendant.

"Urgent family matter," Robin said, putting on a worried face and gesturing to his phone. "I need to leave."

The man nodded and went about his business.

Sterling grabbed the detonator out of his pocket and held it in a way so that it was hidden from view. He took one last glance at the usual hustle and bustle of the airport. The he glanced at the flight that was now beginning to depart. Robin would wait a minute, he wanted a spectacle after all. And a plane exploding midair would be…a blast.

He smirked.

Game. Set. Match.

* * *

Ylissean Central Airport: Plane #112   
Gaius Faraday   
Countdown: 3 minutes

Gaius frowned at the bomb as it count down from three minutes. His nerves abruptly stopped. He was filled with cold dread.

He'd been working on it for almost twenty minutes and he could figure it out. And neither could Morgan who leaned down beside him. The way it was designed, it was complicated. Too complicated. A bomb like this wouldn't have a high blast range.

In fact, this one didn't have a blast range at all.

Because it wasn't a bomb.

"Green?" Gaius said distractedly, doing a final check to make sure.

"Hmm? Is it done?" Stefan asked.

"This isn't a bomb," Gaius said, dropping the bombshell.

Stefan's eyebrows furrowed together in concentration, "But that means…"

The roar of engine jets cut off Stefan. The luggage area that they were situated at was near the runway. Gaius watched, despite the situation, as plane number 456 began to take off.

_Wait…_

Stefan's eyes widened and he swore. The plane began to ascend to the air.

"Someone get me a phone-" Stefan began.

Plane 456 exploded midair.

* * *

Ylissean Central Airport   
Stefan Gerrard

The Director sat down in a random chair in the airport.

He'd failed.

Almost three hundred people killed.

Stefan ran a hand through his hair. He wasn't cut out for this position. His predecessor had died in the field though, and Stefan had been the only one qualified for the position as Director at the time. And there wasn't anyone else capable even now.

"You never were good at handling failure," said a smug voice.

Stefan didn't even need to look up. He reached for his gun. Within three seconds the voice would be silenced. Although a bad Director, Stefan was a good shot.

"Bad idea to shoot me Stef. I got people around me now, you'd die before you aim. Plus we're in a public area. Plenty of innocents will die if you try," Sterling said.

"How?" Stefan muttered with anger.

Sterling knew exactly what he meant. "You mean how I made it seem like flight 456 wasn't full? Easy, I have good Hackers," Robin said calmly.

"Pandemonium could never have done that. He isn't good enough to get by without Canas noticing," Stefan protested. "You know how good Canas is."

"Hmm, that is true. But I assure you, Pandemonium was on the case. He knows Canas' style. They go way back," smirked Sterling.

"Impossible."

"Think of it like this, Pandemonium is a new player in the game. You haven't heard his name except in the past few months. You don't even know who he is," Robin said like he was talking to a little kid.

"Pandemonium is Brady Jensen," Stefan said slowly.

Robin shook his head, "Brady Jensen is dead in a ditch in Ferox. He was going to betray me and run to the YIA. And I couldn't let that happen. Brady Jensen was not Pandemonium, I wanted you to think he was. Looks like it worked."

"Then who is?" growled Stefan.

"Nuh uh uh!" Sterling chuckled, shaking his finger back and forth. "That would be telling."

"I'm going to kill you," said Stefan murderously. And if there weren't innocent people around, he would.

"Oh, I know you want to. But face it, I'm better than you. I stepped out of my hideout alone and beat the best agent in the YIA: you. Today you proved that you're no match for me. As did your team a few days ago."

"What?" Stefan said, puzzled.

"Joshua Cross was in my way of controlling Plegia City. And thanks to his death, I now control the city. So I owe you and your agents my thanks," Robin sneered.

Stefan clenched his hands. He'd been played.

"Toodles Stef. I'll let you know when I next need help," Robin chuckled.

* * *

The Outside Man Job

Mission:  **Failed**


	9. The False Friend Job: Part I

Job #4: The False Friend

Part I

Stefan Gerrard   
YIA Headquarters: Director's Office

"I thought you didn't approve of my work?" said a man cloaked in shadow. Stefan could barely tell that he was smirking.

"I don't," Stefan said darkly. "But I've always kept myself in the light. I thought I was the good guy. But look where that's got me."

The man stood so his face was obscured by the darkness of Stefan's office. The only thing that illuminated the room was Stefan's desk light. The mysterious man could barely be seen.

"This job you have in mind, it won't be cheap. Not by far," said the man. He almost sounded disinterested.

"I know," Stefan muttered.

The man chuckled, "Even though you don't like me, I've always thought you were a good guy. So I'll make you an offer. Payment upon delivery, how's that sound?"

Stefan raised an eyebrow, "Are you that confident? How much?"

"One hundred to know how confident I am, three million for the hit," said the man.

Stefan reluctantly nodded, ignoring the first part, "I suppose that's fair. It will be a pretty hard hit."

"Pretty hard?" the man burst out laughing. "Understatement of the year. This is the biggest gamble of my life. You should be happy that I take all jobs for the right price."

"I am. Now don't disappoint," Stefan said as he glanced down at his desk for a moment.

When he looked up, the Fireman was gone.

* * *

Annamart   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius leaned on the door frame as he watched the TV Anna was watching in the shop late at night. The Mastermind frowned at what she was watching.

" _Even three months later, the public still demands an explanation as to the events at the Ylissean Central Airport. How could YIA and HBI's most wanted sneak into one of the most populated airports of our world?"_ said Noah, the news anchor for the new station.  _"Tonight we have an expert with us to discuss possible theories."_

The camera turned to a new face. The name Heath Moore popped up on the screen.  _"Tell me Heath, what are your thoughts on the matter?"_  Noah Rogers said.

" _We've all heard the police reports, there was no mistaking that this was a bombing,"_ Heath said.  _"I've flown planes for a long time, and I know for a fact that planes don't explode like that unless tampered with. I think the thing we need to be asking ourselves is where was airport security? Where were the government officials that are supposed to be watching for Robin Sterling? Isn't this what the Halidom Bureau of Investigation for? What about SHEPHERD? These three hundred deaths aren't just on Sterling's hands, they're on the government's as well."_

" _It is a horrible tragedy,"_ Noah said somberly.  _"But I hope that every nation in the world is doing their best to bring terrorists like this to justice. Exalt Emmeryn Caverly said after the incident that she intends to devote all her power to catching people like Sterling. I'm sure we all pray that another incident like this will never happen again."_

Gaius cleared his throat, "This isn't going to help you get over it." He knew from experience, after all.

Anna didn't say anything. She hadn't said much of anything in the past three months. And neither had Morgan, but she usually wasn't even around the shop.

Gaius was about to leave the room when Anna spoke up, "How can you deal with it?"

"It?" Gaius questioned.

"The guilt. That Heath is right, those three hundred people's deaths were on our hands. Three hundred innocents died and it's all our fault. How can you be so…normal?" Anna said, sounding on the verge of tears. She usually was these days.

Gaius spoke quietly, "Red, this isn't the first mission I failed. And it won't be the last."

"Three hundred people!" Anna said. She definitely was crying now.

Gaius walked over and embraced her, "Red…no, Anna, it wasn't your fault. If anyone's, it's mine. I should have been quicker. I should have planned better. The blame is mine." He hugged her tighter.

They sat there, still, for several minutes before Anna asked, "How do you do it?"

"Do what?" he said softly.

"Keep a brave face on."

"I think of happier times. I pretend that everything is alright," Gaius said quietly, rubbing her back.

"I don't know if I can do that. Everything isn't alright," Anna said softly.

"Then do it for Morgan. She's barely even been around her. She needs her aunt," Gaius said.

Anna nodded. Gaius stayed for a bit longer before going to check on Morgan. That is, if she were even there.

* * *

Castle Ylisstol   
Chrom Caverly

"Lissa?" Chrom said as he knocked on her door in the castle. He hadn't seen much of Lissa in a long time.

"…What?" Lissa said, her voice devoid of all emotion through the door.

"Can I come in?" Chrom asked.

Lissa didn't answer, but Chrom heard the door unlock. His sister didn't open it, but Chrom took it as an implied 'come in.'

Lissa sat on her bed without saying anything as Chrom stood in the doorway to her big room. He thought for a long time for what to say.

"Lissa…" Chrom said quietly. "What's wrong? You've been like this for ages."

"Chrom…" Lissa whispered, not meeting his eyes. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Lissa, you need to tell me what's wrong," Chrom said firmly. "If someone hurt you, I'll-"

"It's nothing like that," Lissa said quietly. "…I failed my first mission in the YIA."

Chrom frowned, "What was the mission?"

Lissa pointed at her book shelf. Chrom turned to look at it and saw a newspaper clipping. He only read the title before understanding. It read:  **"Who's to blame for Flight 456?"**

"…We didn't stop it," whimpered Lissa. "Had we been better, we could have. Had  _I_  been better, I would have seen Sterling. I could have saved those people…"

Chrom walked over to Lissa and sat down beside her. He hugged her, in the way only a big brother could, "I'm sure that it wasn't your fault."

"Chrom?" Lissa suddenly asked.

"Hmm?" Chrom looked at her.

"Promise me you'll never be a SHEPHERD," Lissa said between tears.

Lissa was asking Chrom to give up his lifelong dream.

And Chrom found himself saying, "I promise."

Whether he meant it or not, Chrom didn't know.

* * *

Ylisstol   
Morgan Cassidy

Morgan silently unwrapped a piece of candy and put it in her mouth. She looked at the grave stone in front of her and forced herself not to turn away.

The graveyard was cold. Unusually cold for the time of year. Morgan shivered, but it wasn't from the cold.

The Thief felt like she wanted to throw up. But she knew she couldn't. Morgan still had at least a hundred more to go.

She had visited the victims' families too. Some she had even tried to apologize to. That hadn't gone well, though Morgan never threw a punch back at them. She deserved all that she had gotten. All the insults. All the punches. All the anger.

_Remember this feeling. Remember and never fail again._

Three hundred people dead. Three hundred innocent people. One hundred twenty seven men, one hundred twenty nine women.

Forty four children.

Morgan could've done something.

The Thief hadn't told any of the other members of the Crew of how she'd bumped into the disguised Robin Sterling. She couldn't take knowing her friends knew she failed like that.

Morgan felt like she wanted to cry.

But she had sworn she wouldn't.

"This won't happen again. Trust me," Morgan promised the grave.

Silence was her only answer.

"I'm not a kid anymore," Morgan announced aloud, as if coming to a realization. "And I swear, I won't let this happen again."

Silence.

Graves can't speak after all.

* * *

Annamart   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius' phone began ringing. Its sharp ringtone pierced the silence of the shop. Anna was in bed, it was late.

_No idea if she's actually sleeping as opposed to crying herself to sleep._

Groaning, he sat up from his nice nap and answered it, "Hello?"

" _Gaius, did I wake you?"_ came a voice that was very familiar to Gaius.

"Colm? Colm Fletcher?" Gaius said with disbelief. It certainly had been a while since he'd last heard from Colm.

" _Yep, that's me. Got a minute?"_ Colm asked. He sounded stressed.

"Sure," Gaius said. "I can give you my sweet time."

" _Haven't changed I see. Listen, I'm in a spot of trouble. And If I remember right, you owe me a favor."_

"True, what do you need?" Gaius said seriously. Colm had saved his life once, and Gaius really did owe him.

" _Some guy has been tailing me all day. And when I tried to lose him, he jumped me! So I killed him, but now I've got a body and no way to dump it,"_ Colm said.  _"You think you can help an old friend out?"_

"Sure, where are you at?" Gaius said, already jumping up and pulling his green sweatshirt on while searching for the necessary materials for the job.

" _425 Renais Avenue. I need to scatter, let's meet up sometime, okay?"_  Colm said.

"Absolutely," Gaius said, dashing out the door.

* * *

425 Renais Avenue   
Colm Fletcher

Colm hung up the phone and set it down. He turned on the water in the bathroom and washed the blood off his hands. He glanced in the mirror and chuckled. Good ol' Gaius.

Drying his hands, Colm slowly walked out into the main room of the  _very_ small one floor house. He watched the door with the eyes of a hawk.

The blinds twitched.

Colm froze, he dive rolled to the wall with the window and pulled out his pistol and cocked it, ready to fire. He peeked upwards.

It was just the wind.

Colm sighed, and reset the hammer on the gun, but kept the firearm out.

If paranoia had a name, its name would be Colm Fletcher.

"Back to business Colm. Remember the job," he muttered darkly.

Colm worked for the Feroxi Security and Intelligence Organization. Except this wasn't a job for FSIO.

This was something else.

Colm reached into his backpack and pulled out a transparent sheet that held fingerprints. Colm went around the room pressing it against the walls in key points.

Then he put a glove on and took the gun that was encased in a plastic bag out and threw it in the trashcan and covered it with trash so it could be seen fairly easily.

And now for the final step.

Colm pulled out his phone and dialed the police.

"Naga! It's horrible, I just saw an orange haired man shoot someone in a house across the street! …The address is 425 Renais Avenue, hurry!" Colm said with a shrill voice. He hung up and stared at his phone carefully.

_No going back now._

Then he got out of the house and ran away.

* * *

YPD Precinct   
Leila Gryfflet

"Remind me why I'm doing this?" Leila groaned, leaning back in her swivel chair.

"Because it's fun, I'm low on cash, and you know you love it," Heather smirked as she dropped a few gold coins in the middle.

"You know you always lose," Leila muttered. Heather heard her.

"I do not!" she said indignantly.

"Heather…you kinda do always lose," Mia spoke up, folding. She set her hand on the table face down.

"Oh, shut up you," muttered Heather, trying (and failing) to hide her smirk.

"At least Matthew isn't playing, then you'd really be screwed," said Mia lightly.

"…I hate you all," muttered Matthew from the seat next to Leila while Heather and Mia sat across from them, probably holding hands under the table. Due to losing the first round of cards somehow, Matthew was forced to fill out reports for the team.

"Well, they got me too, so don't feel too bad," said Legault with a slight smirk. He was supposedly 'helping' Matthew with the paperwork. Though it didn't escape Leila's notice that Legault's stack got smaller while Matthew's suspiciously larger without out much writing from Legault.

Leila ignored it. And by ignored she meant was laughing inwardly.

"Nice of you to help," Matthew remarked with sincerity.

Leila barely contained her laughter.

"It's no problem," Legault said. It appeared to Leila that he was barely containing his laughter as well. Heather just shook her head, obviously aware of what was going on. The detective in training, Mia, just looked confused.

"I could get used to this," Legault said, probably more to himself. "Sitting around, gambling, and getting  _paid."_

"Welcome to the YPD," said Heather, laying down her hand.

Leila laid down her cards. She had a straight flush.

Heather had a pair of tens.

Leila chuckled at Heather's dismayed expression.

"Told you, you always lose," said Mia as she gathered up the cards to shuffle.

"Quiet you," Heather said as she leaned over towards Mia, their gazes locked…

"There are children in the room!" said Legault with a bit more volume than normal.

Matthew leaned over to Leila and whispered loudly, "He was talking about you."

Leila and Legault both spoke at the same time, "No he wasn't." Matthew frowned and stuck out his tongue at his girlfriend.

Mia and Heather missed the whole exchange. They were too busy eating each other's faces.

"Would it be bad manners if I threw something at them?" Matthew muttered, trying to go back to the paperwork.

"Right now, yes. In twenty seconds, no," said Legault.

And so, precisely twenty three seconds later, Matthew threw a piece of gold at Heather.

Chaos ensued.

When Detective Stahl Donivore walked in several minutes later, he saw an unconscious Matthew, a Legault that wasn't doing anything but drawing on the unconscious detective's face and Leila who was just endlessly shuffling the deck of cards in her hand.

And Mia and Heather weren't anywhere to be seen.

"Did they go sneak off somewhere?" Stahl said, out of breath. He'd been running around due to a call.

Legault nodded.

Stahl shook his head, "There's been a murder and we're on the case. Legault, wake Matthew up. Leila, go to the women's restroom and grab those two."

Leila froze. She didn't want to go in there. Not with them in there.

Stahl looked her in the eye and put on a very serious expression, "That's an order, Detective Gryfflet."

Leila would need brain bleach.

* * *

425 Renais Ave   
Stahl Donivore   
_10 minutes later…_

Stahl squinted as another car drove by. He hated night driving.

In his squad car, he had Legault and Matthew. For fun, he made Leila ride with Heather and Mia.

_I'm going to wake up tomorrow with a knife in my chest for that._

"Take a left," Legault said. He was in professional mode. Or as Matthew had called it, boring mode.

Surprisingly, a fairly accurate description.

"Is there a plan?" Matthew asked.

"Kick ass, take names, and eat muffins," Stahl said without a second thought.

That was good enough for Matthew.

Stahl pulled up several houses down. "We walk," he simply said.

The other squad car pulled up behind them and the three women stepped out. Leila looked like she wanted to murder Stahl. Heather was grinning, likely from many innuendos. Mia's face was red.

Stahl motioned for them to follow. It was business time now.

The six detectives made their to the small one story house.

Stahl walked up towards the door, took a deep breath, and kicked it open. He sprang through and shouted, "Police, freeze!" And he pointed his gun at whoever was inside.

* * *

425 Renais Ave   
Gaius Faraday   
_10 minutes earlier…_

Something wasn't right.

Gaius felt a cold chill up his back ever since he stepped out of his car. Why would Colm kill a man here? Why in a house? Why so…public?

Gaius never the less opened the door with a bit of force and went about his work. Colm had kept the hit clean thankfully.

Gaius quickly mopped up all the blood with a towel he'd brought. He'd done this before, in his early days as an agent. Back when he was a janitor of sorts.

Gaius popped a sucker into his mouth. Candy always makes the time go by faster. It was a scientific law.

With a special spray that removes stains completely, the carpet was no concern. Just a spray and  _poof_ , bloodstains gone.

_Think of the money Green would make if he sold this formula._

_Except it would be a little too easy to kill people and get away with it then._

Gaius peeked inside of the bathroom. That was when he really became paranoid.

There was a gun in the trashcan. Visible.

"…Oh… _shit,"_  mumbled Gaius, eyes wide.

The Mastermind began to run to the door, but he was too late.

The door sprang open and smashed him in the face.

"Police, freeze!"

Gaius fell to the floor from the force of the impact. When he came back into focus, he saw three guns pointing at him and voices speaking eratically.

And Gaius also remembered he hadn't dumped the body yet.

This wasn't going to look good.

"Orange haired man, huh?" said the brown haired policeman near the back of the pack.

The forefront one (who seemed to be in charge) cleared his throat, "You are hereby under arrest for suspicion of murder. You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you…" He continued on with the familiar speech.

Shit.

Gaius had been set up.

* * *

?   
Colm Fletcher

"I did what you asked, happy?" said the blue haired man, clearly irritated.

"There's something else I'm going to have you do," Ishtar Lievar said, face on a computer screen via videochat.

"No. I'm done, that's what we agreed to," Colm said flatly.

Ishtar shook her head and pushed the camera on her side over. There sat the heart and soul of Colm's problem.

Ishtar cocked her handgun and pointed it at Neimi, "I'm sorry Fletcher, but I think I must have misheard you. Could you repeat that?"

Colm's hand tightened into a fist, "What's. Do. You. Want."

Ishtar only smiled.


	10. The False Friend Job: Part II

The False Friend Job

Part II

Ylisstol: The Holy Church of Naga   
Claude Trematir

Claude eyed his target from his pew. The priest watched the man carefully from behind his prayer book, planning his next move.

Claude wasn't the type to ask lots of questions as to why some of his targets were being targeted. It usually wasn't too hard to figure out, and often the criminals confessed to him in the face of death, trying to atone for their actions.

The man of Naga always felt extreme guilt at the irony of the situation.

But it was his job. Naga had given him these gifts, so Claude chose to use them. To stop those who desecrated the beautiful life Naga had given them, Claude was a YIA agent. One who generally was in charge of disposing of many people.

Claude stilled his breathing as he tried to overhear what the man was saying in his whispered praying. Brother Libra was usually better at getting close to a mark. Claude had to rely on his hearing, which from all the gunshots and explosions over the years wasn't the best.

And now he was sounding like an old man.

The yellow haired priest had seen this type before. He was the kind that knew he was going to die, and came to pray as if that would get him into heaven. One could tell from the nervous twitching, the eyes that were shut so hard it hurt, and the occasional whimper.

As much as he tried, Claude couldn't keep his judgmental thoughts under control. The man was pathetic.

Claude stood up quietly and walked over, hands clasped on his prayer book and asked the man, "Is there anything I can do for you, child?"

The man jumped, and if there had been any doubt in Claude's mind, it cleared. The expression on the man's face told it all.

Guilt.

"Father! You startled me… I don't think there's anything you can do," he said, almost remorsefully. Claude had to stop from raising an eyebrow. They usually didn't feel remorse.

Claude frowned, "You look as though you have something heavy weighing on your conscious. Child, would you like me to relieve you of your sins?

The man hesitated, searching Claude's sympathetic face carefully before nodding. The priest motioned for the man to follow him. And the man did so.

"What's your name, child?" Claude said kindly.

"Julian, father," he said.

"A good name," Claude smiled kindly. "This way," he motioned through a door way and a calmer Julian nodded and led the way.

They soon reached the room where a priest would hear the confessor's sins. Claude let Julian enter first out of courtesy and followed in behind him.

Claude brushed aside the curtain that could be used to hide the confessor's identity. He had already seen Julian. And Claude didn't think that the man cared if a priest saw him.

"Father…I'm a bad person," Julian said shakily. At every sound, Julian had been jumping at on the walk to their destination. It didn't escape Claude's notice.

Claude gave an encouraging smile and nodded him on.

"I…was part of the Black Fang. I killed…so many," Julian said with shivers. He rolled up his sleeve on his right arm and displayed a tattoo of a black elegant F. "And now I think someone is coming after me."

Claude reached down to the ground to retrieve his prayer book he had set down and opened it, cover facing Julian. "Do you regret your involvement, Julian?" Claude asked.

"I…don't know," he said.

Claude nodded in an understanding way. He reached into the cut out area of the hollow book and held a pistol so Julian wouldn't see it. He clicked the hammer back quietly.

Not quietly enough.

Julian heard, and he bolted upright and narrowed his eyes, "What was that? What're you doing?"

Claude kept his composure, as he had done so many times, and said, "I'm relieving you of your sins, child."

And Claude pointed the silenced gun at Julian's face and shot him.

Julian crumpled to the floor without a sound.

Claude looked away from distaste. Just because he had the skill to kill didn't mean he enjoyed it.

Claude was putting away the pistol as he heard his phone ring. Sighing, he picked it up. Recognizing the number, he said, "I'm busy, Frederick."

" _I need your help. My Mastermind got landed in prison. And we need a priest in order to get to him. None of us fit the bill."_

Claude sighed with a slight chuckle, "You'll owe me, got that? Give me thirty minutes, where are you?"

" _The Annamart. And we stopped keeping track of how many times I owe you a while ago. And can you try and be here a bit quicker? We'd like to run you down on the plan before heading over there."_

Claude snorted, "You may have. I didn't. But it'll be a bit. I have a body to dump."

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Employee Lounge   
Stahl Donivore

"Is this really necessary?" Stahl asked the police chief.

Gregor shrugged, "Gregor got orders from top brass, 'Faraday must go to maximum security. It's his past record.' When Gregor gets orders like that, Gregor obeys."

"But this guy only murdered someone. And the fingerprints haven't even been analyzed yet. It seems a bit too much," Stahl shrugged. "I mean, I think he did it, but this is a prison for terrorists, serial killers…"

Gregor nodded, "Gregor know the feeling. But you need to know your place, yes? Faraday may have top secret crimes that Gregor doesn't know about, Gregor thinks. You know how all that cloak and dagger business works."

"I suppose… I'll hang around here until we get the fingerprint reading back. If they aren't his, I'll let him go," said Stahl. "He kept going on about how he was set up."

Gregor nodded with approval, "Gregor is going to go see what Gregor can dig up. Even Gregor is a bit suspicious about this one."

Stahl sighed and sat down on a chair in the employee lounge. It was going to be a long night.

And he was going to need a muffin.

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Main Entrance   
Claude Trematir

" _And we're live in three…two…one."_

Claude pushed open the doors that led inside the prison. Dressed in his cassock, he drew a few glances within the lobby. The priest walked up to the guard that guarded the door to the actual prison versus the lobby he was in and smiled, "Good evening."

The guard fidgeted awkwardly, "Uh…father, what can I do for you?"

Claude put on a sad look, "It seems one of Naga's flock has led himself astray. I'm here to see Gaius Faraday, he asked for me specifically."

The guard furrowed his eyebrows, "I uh…can't just let anyone through."

_Brilliant deduction. And this is why you're a guard._

Claude mentally slapped himself. A servant of Naga doesn't have thoughts like that.

"Child, what is your name?" Claude asked kindly.

"My name is Roy," said the red headed guard.

Claude smiled, but let some sternness into his gaze, "Tell me Roy, do you think a man of Naga would lie? I am here to try and bring a lost soul back on the path of Naga. Nothing more, nothing less."

Roy stared at the floor sheepishly, "Sorry father, you can go through."

Claude patted the young man on the shoulder, "You were just doing your job. And you are very good at it, Naga can't fault you for that."

Roy perked up and looked more confident as Claude walked down the hall.

"The package is on its way," Claude whispered into the com link. "How about the other package?"

" _Copy that, the mailman is in route. The route is clear,"_ came Virion's voice. He was acting Mastermind in Gaius' absence.

"Understood," said Claude and he kept walking slowly like a priest would.

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Gaius' Cell   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius had never had a headache this bad. It felt like he had an RPG exploding in his skull while getting hit by a train.

"Need…sugar," Gaius mumbled. It took too much energy to talk, and it made his head feel worse. Any thinking did. Why did the guards have to take his reserve stash he'd hidden!?

"Child?" there was a knock on his cell. Gaius flipped over in his bed and saw a familiar face.

"I…know you," muttered Gaius, his mind not working properly without sugar.

The priest, judging by his clothes, smiled and nodded, "You asked to see me, remember? And I'm Father Claude. You wanted to try and go back on the path of Naga, right?"

Even in his less than competent state, Gaius could tell when someone was prompting him. "…Thank you for coming father, sorry it took me a little to remember. Prison does strange things to a person. And…I don't want to keep living like this. I want forgiveness."

Claude smiled, knelt, and began praying. Gaius spoke along with him for the parts Claude instructed him to say. At the end of their twenty minute session, Claude gave Gaius his prayer book. "Pray every morning and night. Seek Naga's forgiveness on your own."

Gaius nodded and began to turn away. Then he saw Claude's hand move. He showed five fingers, then swished his hand back and forth in a 'silence' motion and finally tapped the ground with a fist in a span of about three seconds.

Claude stood up, "May Naga be with you, Mr. Faraday."

Gaius smiled back at him.

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Security Room   
Stahl Donivore

"Who is that?" Stahl demanded, pointing at the priest that had just visited Faraday's cell.

"That's Father Claude," said the security guard with a smile. "He's from the Holy Church of Naga, my church. You know, that big one in central Ylisstol?"

"Who let him through?" Stahl said, watching the man through the camera screens carefully.

"Whoever is on duty at the main doors," shrugged the guard.

"And that is…?" Stahl said, with a bit of urgency.

The guard checked a camera, "Hmm…yep, that's Roy. He's a good kid. Why did you want to know?"

But Stahl just ran out of the room.

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Outside   
Lissa Caverly

Lissa typed away on her keyboard inside the van, looking at the camera screen she was viewing of Gaius' cell.

"You ready yet?" Virion asked from inside the YIA van.

"…Done. Cameras are set. Eyes are blind," Lissa said. The security guards inside now had a frozen picture of what had been going on the cell. For the past five minutes, Gaius had been lying with his back to the camera, apparently asleep. Now the guards would think Gaius was asleep the entire time during his breakout. Plus she'd gotten clean, peopleless shots for every other security camera.

Virion touched his ear for the com link, "Package has been delivered, receiver is ready. Package two, ETA?"

Lissa took control of the camera that was outside of Gaius' cell and moved it back and forth, making some noise.

Gaius was waiting for it, he jumped up and opened the prayer book Claude had given him. He grabbed something out of it.

Gaius ran to the cell door and pointed two fingers up, waved them in a circle and pointed them at the door.

Lissa sprang the lock on the door. Gaius glanced out of the door of the cell. He began making his way to his left, down the hallway. When he encountered a electronically locked door, he took the tiny chip that had been in the book and stuck it on the side of the key card lock. It deactivated the lock and Gaius ran through the now open door.

"Frederick, are you in position?" Virion spoke.

" _ETA two minutes,"_ came his reply.

"You have one minute," Virion said.

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Back Hallways   
Frederick Quinn

Frederick walked through the back of the prison, when he came upon two guards.

"Hey, you can't be back here!" said the first.

"Well, that's a shame," muttered Frederick, before he threw a right hook at the guard. The man crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

The second guard pulled out his handgun and pointed it at Frederick. The Hitter chuckled, "Big mistake. I don't like guns...and that includes getting them pointed at me." With his left hand, he grabbed the guard's wrist. Quickly finding the pressure point, the guard cried out and dropped the firearm. Frederick pushed the man backward and kicked the man in right kneecap.

The guard fell to the ground in pain just as Frederick threw a punch at the man's solar plexus. Down for the count.

"Don't point guns at me," Frederick said politely.

The door to Frederick's left opened. A familiar face came out.

"What's the plan?" Gaius said as he glanced at the guards with a relaxed gaze.

"Suit up," Frederick said gesturing to the guard's uniforms. They'd attract less attention. "Morgan'll be here soon."

Gaius briefly looked at the two guards, sizing them up, before walking over to the unconscious one and began taking his uniform off him.

Then a ceiling tile fell to the ground. A red headed woman poked her head through with a smile, "'Sup Gaius. Ready to go?"

Frederick watched a brief emotion pass over Gaius' face as he heard Morgan's comment. Then he nodded with a smile, "Let's go."

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Security Room   
Stahl Donivore

Stahl didn't make it very far on his hunch before he was stopped outside of the security room.

Two people dressed in white lab coats stood before him. One tall with blue hair, one shorter with red hair. The latter was an Anna.

"Detective Donivore, I presume?" said the man with blue hair.

"What is it?" said Stahl impatiently.

"Results from the crime scene," said Anna. She handed him a file folder.

Stahl took it and took off running without even looking at it.

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Security Room   
Anna Cassidy

"Well that was rather easy," said Anna. "Thanks for your help Sig."

"Anytime," said Sigurd. Sigurd di'Arganan was the YIA's master forger, and a Hacker to boot. "But I better be off. Donivore won't recognize the fake, but even so I'd rather not linger too much. Just because he won't, doesn't mean other people who are watching will be fooled."

Anna nodded and the two left the building.

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison: Ventilation Shafts   
Gaius Faraday

"Where is our end point in this plan?" asked Gaius as Morgan led him along in the ventilation ducts.

"The Hideout," said Morgan.

"Been a while since we had any use for that," Gaius commented lightly.

"Here we are," Morgan said and she dropped head first out of the ventilation shaft. She touched the ground with her hands and executed a perfect handspring.

Gaius did the same, except sloppier. Morgan quirked an eyebrow at him and Gaius shrugged, "Not a Thief anymore. At least, in that kind of sense."

Then the hammer of a gun clicked.

The two agents turned around on the spot to see a detective standing there, gun pointed at them.

"Hands in the air!" she shouted. She brushed her purple hair out of her face.

"Woah woah woah! There's clearly been a misunderstanding here!" Gaius said to the purple haired detective. He took a cautious step forward and noted the tensing of the woman's muscles.

Gaius reacted instantaneously. He bolted forward and knocked her arm to the side. Milliseconds after he did so, the detective fired, missing.

Quick reaction time.

Gaius tried to end it quickly, but the detective blocked his kick to her leg. She threw a punch at his face. Gaius reached up to block it, but was hit in the stomach with her other hand, a feint.

The Mastermind deflected her next punch and followed up with several of his own. The woman blocked all but the last, which Gaius barely managed to land on her. The detective took a few steps backward from the attack.

Gaius delivered a cross chop to her right side. As the woman tried to block it, Gaius glimpsed a faded tattoo on her inner right arm, right by her armpit. A black elegant F.

_Black Fang._

Gaius furrowed his eyebrows. That wasn't right, this woman had all the wrong tells to be Black Fang. Then he realized she must be  _Ex-_ Black Fang. Big difference.

Gaius punched the woman in the temple while she tried to block his other hand, knocking her out.

"She'll be fine," said the Mastermind to Morgan. "Let's go."

* * *

Ylissean Maximum Security Prison   
Stahl Donivore

"Leila?" Stahl said as he turned the corner, his eyes widening as he saw a woman lying on the floor.

The purple haired detective was flat on the ground. She groaned at the sound of her name.

"What happened!?" Stahl asked as he ran up to her. Matthew was going to kill him.

"Faraday escaped," Leila rubbed her head. "He's…good. Too good to be a normal civilian. But he got away."

Stahl nodded, "Don't worry about it. I just got the lab results. Turns out Faraday wasn't our man."

"Then who is?"

"Someone named Colm Fletcher. Up you get, we've got work to do."

* * *

Ylissean Suburbs: Mansion   
Volke

The Fireman pulled down the handkerchief from his mouth. The barrier of cloth to hide his breathing didn't matter. Not when he had prey like this. Plus Volke was good enough where he didn't need it.

For the ninth time, he checked to make sure all his weapons were in place.

Despite the situation, he almost laughed. Damn job had him feeling like it was his first job.

_It's just another job. Just with a bit of a more dangerous target._

Volke vaulted across the gap between buildings. On top of the mansion, Volke lithely slid down the roof and jumped onto the balcony on the second floor.

The house was all lit up. It made Volke a little more relieved. Had his target known he was coming, he would have killed the lights so as to be able to sneak up on the Fireman.

Volke pulled out a lockpick. The window took little time, perhaps thirty seconds. It would have been shorter except he was slightly nervous.

_Nervous? You're the Fireman. You don't get nervous._

Volke stepped through the now open window and silently began to scope the place. He took out his signature custom built silenced pistol. It was one of the most accurate guns in the world.

The assassin eased open the door that stood between him and the main hallway of the mansion. Once it was open, he peeked his head out and narrowed his eyes. He could see the target.

Kellam Anderson sat in a room adjacent to the main hall, watching TV. Volke drew a sniper scope out of his pocket and attached it to his pistol. Silently, of course.

Volke brought it up to his eye and aimed, placing Kellam's head right dead in the center of the crosshair.

The Fireman tightened his finger on the trigger. He took a deep breath.

And Kellam turned in his chair and pointed a pistol right where Volke was and fired several times.

Had Volke reacted any amount of time later, he would have been riddled with bullet holes. Volke had managed to duck out of the way. But he wasn't out of danger, not by a long shot.

More bullets followed, piercing through the wall and steadily getting closer to Volke.

Then they stopped, Kellam was reloading.

Volke made his move, he dove out of the room into the hallway while firing several times. In an effort to distract his target, he shouted, "Hey Anderson! I heard you were in jail. Guess I was wrong."

Kellam had been in jail for a time. Volke had assumed Sterling had sprung him. Not like Kellam would have been kept there for long, he was too good.

Without missing a beat, Kellam slammed in another clip to his gun and shouted back, "Hey Volke, I heard you sucked! Guess I was  _right!_ "

When the shots from Kellam resumed, Volke began to regret taking this job. He vaulted up the walls in the hallway which was out of Kellam's line of sight and clung to the chandelier, dispersing his weight so he wouldn't cause it to come crashing down.

Kellam stopped firing. He began to walk toward where Volke had been, pistol held out in front of him like a professional. Unshaking, unafraid.

When he got beneath Volke, the Fireman jumped off the chandelier with barely a sound. He clenched his left fist, and the brace he had on his arm shot out a knife on the bottom of his hand. He angled it down at Kellam for the kill.

But Anderson had heard his jump. He sidestepped just enough for Volke to miss. But he didn't get out of the way completely, Volke was able to kick the gun out of Kellam's hand as he fell. As the Fireman hit the ground, he rolled and recovered on his feet. Turning on the spot, he emptied a clip in Kellam's direction. Off target, misses.

Kellam managed to recover his gun. But he must have been still slightly disoriented, for his shot hit Volke's gun instead of his hand. The firearm was flung from his hand. The Fireman palmed a knife that had been hiding in his sleeve.

With a jerk of the wrist, the knife was flung at Kellam, who dodged. But the Fireman had been anticipating that. So in the time it took the knife to get to Kellam, Volke closed the distance between them. With a cross chop, the gun in Kellam's hand hit the floor.

Anderson stepped backward with agile and ease one wouldn't expect from him. He grabbed one of the ornamental swords from the wall and swung it at Volke with finesse and style. Volke blocked it with his knife and the two held there, trying to overpower the other.

They stood still like that for several moments.

"I gotta hand it to you, not many people can just spot me immediately," Kellam said with a cocky look. "But the number of people who can is about to be reduced by one!"

Kellam pulled the sword back and swung low, trying to earn a hit on Volke's leg. The Fireman jumped back, letting distance get between them again. That was what Kellam wanted, it was how he worked best.

In a true fencer's form, Kellam began to press down on Volke using the blade's reach to take advantage of Volke's short range and in attempt to press Volke against a wall.

The Fireman threw his knife in desperation at Kellam to try and make an opening.

It worked, Kellam had to pull back the sword to block the knife. Volke closed the distance once again and clenched his left fist. The hidden blade jut out of his brace on his arm.

He punched forward, aiming for the right lung. A punctured lung would mean victory for him.

Volke's aim was true, and Kellam realized what was happening too late. The blade hit Kellam right at the lung.

And bounced off.

Kellam kicked Volke in the stomach and the Fireman was flung backward into a wall.

_Bullet proof vest! How is he that fast!?_

Kellam began the attack again, Volke had taken out one of his several spare knives and managed to fend off Kellam while he regained his composure and bearings from the hit to the wall.

Several minutes passed by without either gaining the upper hand, and Volke felt his body begin to tire. He was beginning to slow, and Volke knew Kellam saw.

Volke tried throwing his knife at Kellam again. The assassin effortlessly blocked it, not being distracted like last time. Volke reached up to his back and quickly pulled the shot gun that was on his back off. The Fireman pointed it at Kellam very quickly and fired.

Volke was surprised he made as good a shot as he did. But the blast hit Kellam in the chest. Not like it would do much since he had the bullet proof vest and it was at such a short range, but it was still the power of a shotgun hitting him. Kellam would feel it.

Kellam dropped the sword as he crashed to the ground. He picked up one of Volke's discarded knives and threw it at the Fireman. It hit the shotgun just as he was about to fire again, causing his shot to miss.

Volke dropped the shotgun, reloading wasn't worth it. It would get him killed.

For the third time that night, Volke clenched his left fist and the blade shot out. Volke jumped at Kellam, making sure not to miss this time.

The lights went out.

Volke swore very loudly as his blade hit the wood floor. It broke the brace on his arm, leaving Volke with a busted brace where the knife stuck out in a useless angle.

The Fireman got up and pulled out his last remaining weapon, his back up pistol. Then he stood completely still, waiting for Kellam to make a noise.

For ten minutes, nothing. No sounds at all. Volke could barely hear his own breathing

Volke took a tentative step. No noise. He hated when he had to deal with creaky floorboards.

Then the lights flashed back on. And Kellam stood a few feet in front of him.

Gun in hand, pointing at Volke's head.

"Night night," he said smugly.

Volke dove to the floor as he heard the gunshot.

It had missed, albeit barely.

…But the second one didn't.

Volke felt the hot metal pierce below his heart. Non-fatal laceration, he could survive if he got medical attention.

But he wouldn't survive the third shot to the head.


	11. The False Friend Job: Part III: Finale

The False Friend Job

Part III: Finale

Ylisstol: Streets   
Colm Fletcher

Colm glanced at the car that pulled up at the arranged spot on the street. He nonchalantly walked forward and got in the black car.

"Is this really necessary?" Colm growled as he glared at the woman in the car. Lately he hadn't had much patience. And with good reason.

"Vika, drive," commanded Ishtar. The woman in the driver's seat did just that as Ishtar turned her attention to Colm. But first Ishtar pulled the glass divider that blocked their conversation from reaching Vika. "Now Colm, very nice of you to cooperate and come here."

Colm snorted, "Well, that's what blackmail does. You kidnap my wife, of course I do what you want."

"I suppose," Ishtar said disinterestedly. She examined her fingernails with more attention than she gave Colm.

There was silence for a few minutes. Colm grew tired of it very quickly, "Why am I here? I've done everything you asked. If it's about those files, here they are. I was going to do the drop as we had agreed, but seeing as I'm here." Colm reached into the inside pocket of his suit and pulled out a small file folder. He handed it to Ishtar.

The blue haired woman opened it. Colm glimpsed the front page of the file. Feeling lucky and admittedly curious, he asked, "What's the Rabbit's Foot?"

Ishtar shrugged, "We don't know. And if Ylisse's got a weapon that we don't know of, we're going to find out what it is. But that doesn't matter right now. What matters now, is you."

"Me?" Colm asked annoyed. "Got some other blackmail material on me or something? Or do you want me to go ruin someone else's life?"

Ishtar ignored the last part, "Colm, you're good at what you do. Too good. I've been instructed to not relinquish our hold over you because of how useful you are. Sterling's orders."

Colm stiffened. This was not good.

"However," Ishtar let the word hang there for a while, making eye contact with Colm for the first time that evening, "there is another option for you."

Colm didn't say anything, but he was listening.

"It would mean you go to jail for that murder. Somehow, YPD got your prints. FSIO might bail you out, but it depends on whether they want to risk the scandal. But Neimi will go free and into hiding. All you have to do is one thing, deliver a message for me," Ishtar said.

"To who?" Colm said in a neutral tone.

"Sigurd di'Arganan," Ishtar said, her voice betraying nothing. "There's…something he needs to know. Something I must have him know." But Colm was no ordinary agent. FSIO drilled all their agents on interrogation. And Colm caught something in her voice.

"Holy shit," Colm said, startled. "You're  _worried_! You  _need_ this message delivered." Now Colm had something to work with.

"I…am," Ishtar reluctantly admitted.

"And why would I help you?" Colm said angrily. "Sounds like you're desperate. You need my cooperation."

Ishtar was silent, "Because if you don't, I'll have Neimi killed."

"…Bitch," muttered Colm. Had he been calm, Colm easily would have seen that minor detail.

"I'll tell you where she's being kept, you and her can go into hiding together. But I won't give you the location until you deliver my message," Ishtar said.

"…How would I even get out of here alive?" Colm asked. Damn! He was already considering her offer.

"Well, upon my order to kill Neimi, you would render me unconscious. You would take my gun and shoot the driver of this car. The car would crash, I would survive by luck, and you would jump out and avoid the two cars of Sterling's thugs that have been tailing us that you have no knowledge of. Upon escaping, there is a man waiting at 672 Chalphy Street that I will never tell you about, not even if you torture me. He has the message," Ishtar said calmly.

Colm nodded very slowly. He made eye contact with Ishtar one last time before his fist rocketed out and smashed her in the face, possibly breaking her nose. Colm reached into her suit and pulled out a revolver and pointed it at Vika the driver. He pulled the trigger.

_Bang!_

Vika slumped down on the steering wheel, dead. Colm calculated that in less than two point four seconds, the car would swerve into oncoming traffic. Thankfully Colm hadn't put a seatbelt on. He wrenched open the door of the car and jumped out of it. The blue haired agent took the fall with experience.

He rolled several times before ending up on his back facing the cars that were driving toward him. It wasn't hard to pick out the two cars that had been following them. Colm aimed the revolver at the thugs in the driver's seats. With two precise shots, he killed the two drivers and began to run for it.

Colm never looked back to see what happened to the thugs, whether they died or if they were trying to save one of their boss Ishtar.

But the important thing was they didn't follow him.

Twenty minutes later, Colm was at the address. The street was deserted, except for one cloaked figure that began walking toward Colm. He pulled down his hood.

"Kris Holst?" Colm said with raised eyebrows.

"Deliver this message," Kris whispered to Colm and handed him an envelope that was presumably the message. "Get to Faraday's Hideout, you know where it is. With luck, tonight might be the last night of our problems. Stay down, and once you get there, di'Arganan has the address. Go!"

Colm nodded and began to run. Hopefully he'd be fast enough before Sterling figured out what was going on.

* * *

The Hideout   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius quickly changed out of his prison uniform and into his usual attire. He and the rest of the team, plus Claude and Sigurd sat in the main room of the Hideout planning their next move.

"Are you sure it was Colm?" Virion asked, puzzled.

"Absolutely," Gaius said, with two suckers in his mouth and a chocolate bar in his hand. He was getting rid of that headache the sweet way.

"I still find it hard to believe he would betray us," Virion muttered. "Why would he get you locked up? I can't think up an angle that he'd benefit from."

Sigurd cleared his throat, "Blackmail, perhaps?"

Gaius shrugged. It didn't really matter to him, all that he could see was that a friend had stabbed him in the back. And Gaius wouldn't forgive him. You don't betray your friends.

There was a knock at the door. Sigurd jumped up before anyone else could react. Gaius narrowed his eyes, the forger had been waiting for that. Or been aware that it someone might stop by.

The blue haired man opened the door. Whoever was there was out of Gaius' line of sight, but Sigurd took something from them. Then Sigurd said, "2130 Etruria Avenue. Better hurry."

Whoever was at the door ran off, and Sigurd walked back in with an envelope in his hands.

"What the hell was that?" Morgan asked sharply.

Sigurd ran a hand through his hair distractedly, "That was Colm dropping off a message for me."

There was silence, then Claude asked, "And why, may I ask, did you let him go? I was under the impression that he was our target. Unless someone saw fit to lie to me this whole time?"

"He was being blackmailed. Sterling has his wife. Colm is going to disappear now, and now is no longer our concern," Sigurd replied as he opened the envelope and scanned its text. His eyes narrowed, "Damn, I've got to go!"

Without even waiting for a reply, Sigurd dropped the letter on the ground and practically ran out the door. Except with style, because he was Sigurd di'Arganan.

"Are we just special, or is this job always like this? I thought secret agents actually knew what was going on sometimes," Lissa asked, clearly lost.

Frederick chuckled, "You can never trust any information you assume. Hell, you can't even trust some of the facts you think are right. So yes, it'll always be like this."

Gaius picked up the letter that was addressed to Sigurd.

_Sigurd,_

_I'm going to be found out. Unless Stef intervenes, I'm dead. Kellam likely won't hesitate pulling the trigger when he finds out. But you may have more time if Robin wants to question me._

_Better hurry, you know where I am._

_Ishtar Reeves_

Gaius' eyes widened.

Reeves.

Priam Reeves.

"Holy shit," whispered Gaius, connecting the dots.

"What?" came the resounding cry of six voices.

"Priam's wife, she didn't leave him. She's a mole in Sterling's inner circle. Ishtar is one of ours."

* * *

2130 Etruria Avenue   
Colm Fletcher

Colm heard a twig snap behind him. He whipped out his gun and pointed it at the cute rabbit that appeared out of the bush behind him.

"Son of a…" Colm muttered, heart racing. This paranoia wasn't healthy.

Colm couldn't let anything go wrong. Not while his wife's life was at stake.

The address had lead Colm to a warehouse. A grey, boring, typical warehouse. With several black vans outside of it.

With a few bushes and bunnies near it.

Colm stealthily made his way to the black vans. There weren't any people, civilians or thugs, near them. Colm rolled up the sleeve of his shirt and took off his watch. He cranked the nob on the side three times. Colm tossed the watch under the nearest van and began to run for cover on the side of the warehouse.

Once on the side of the warehouse, Colm looked around the corner. He didn't even know if this would work, it wasn't like he'd used the explosive function on his watch before.

_BOOM!_

_Looks like it worked._

The van rocketed up in the air a bit, now blazing in flames. There was soon a second explosion from within the car, and the other two vans got caught up in the blaze.

Four thugs ran out of the warehouse, all armed and at a loss for what was going on. Colm took out the revolver he'd taken off Ishtar and fired four shots.

Four bodies hit the ground.

And now the clock was on, he wouldn't have long before police showed up.

Colm dashed to the door that the thugs had come out of and ducked inside of it. He immediately came upon another guard who likely was going to investigate the gunshots.

Colm threw a punch at the man's face. The agent felt his fist connect and a loud snap followed by a spurt of blood. The thug fell with a broken nose. Colm aimed the gun at the man's forehead and shot him.

Colm proceeded further into the warehouse. When he got to the huge, main room he could see two men with a woman tied to a chair.

Neimi.

Colm growled. Thankfully, the guards' backs were turned. So long as Colm was silent, they wouldn't see him coming. It fit Colm's style perfectly.

And that's how it happened. Colm crept up behind them. Neimi's back was also turned, she couldn't see her husband coming to rescue her. And that was probably for the better, she'd have started to cry and ruined it.

Colm raised the pistol and fired a bullet into the man on the right's skull. He fell down with a  _thump._  Colm aimed at the other man who began to turn around. He pulled the trigger.

_Click._

Colm's face grew pale. He hadn't reloaded.

The thug grinned, completely disregarding his dead friend and pointed his shotgun at Colm. Colm stood still, trying to figure out a plan. No success.

A trigger was pulled.

The thug's head was blown off.

A figure cloaked like Kris had been stood in the door way Colm had come from pointing a gun. But it wasn't Kris, this man was shorter and his face was completely obscured.

"Who…?" Colm asked, very wary about the fact that he still had no bullets in his gun.

"Just a favor for Ishtar. Us moles need to stick together," it was hard to tell, but the voice was a man's. Colm didn't recognize it.

"Who are you?" Colm asked.

"That would be telling. My identity cannot be compromised, so understand that I'm not about to tell you," the man chuckled. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a plastic bag and threw it to Colm. Then the shooter left the way Colm had come in.

Colm grabbed the bag and looked inside. Two passports, two plane tickets, several thousand in gold notes.

The blue haired agent quickly reloaded his gun and then began to untie Neimi. She was already whimpering, but it was muffled by the gag.

"Alright Neimi, don't worry. I'm here, stop crying," Colm tried to reassure her.

Neimi began sobbing in Colm's arms, "Colm! I was so scared!"

"'s alright Neimi. You're safe now," Colm said. "But we got to get going. We'll have to disappear."

Neimi nodded, still crying. She held Colm tightly as they walked out of the warehouse.

Into several police cars.

"Gregor says, hands above your heads!" shouted a man, presumably a higher up.

"Shit," Colm whispered. Colm scooped Neimi into his arms and began to run back the way they came. Colm had seen another exit, perhaps they'd have luck there.

"After them!" came the detective's voice.

Colm ran faster than he'd ever remembered. If they got caught now, they were finished. Colm would convicted of murder and Sterling would go after Neimi in revenge.

The exit Colm had seen turned out not to be an exit, but an entrance to a small storage area. But most importantly, it had a window. A window meant an exit the coppers most likely weren't watching.

* * *

2130 Etruria Avenue   
Mia Meridas

Mia saw the two criminals duck into the small storage area. The purple haired detective in training sped up ahead of her girlfriend Heather. Heather was quicker, but Mia was better at sprinting in short bursts.

"Wait up!" Heather shouted.

Mia didn't, she wanted to be the one who arrested these two. It would be her first arrest. Something she'd dreamt about.

Mia entered the room. Upon not seeing them, she glanced around. Spotting a window, she saw the pink haired woman climbing out through the window. Mia quickly located the blue haired man.

The detective in training held up her standard issue YPD pistol and shouted, "Freeze!"

The man didn't, he held up his pistol and fired. Mia felt something hot stab through her right leg. Screaming in pain, the purple haired woman collapsed to the ground unable to keep herself upright. She hit her head on the hard floor causing her vision to blur. But before it blurred, she saw the man jump up and out of the window.

"Mia!" screamed Heather.

Mia could hear voices. But her head hurt, all the loud voices made it worse. She closed her eyes in hopes of being able to see better when she opened them.

"Mia! Don't close your eyes!" shouted Heather in full panic. Mia began to feel immense overwhelming pain.

Mia closed her eyes and fell unconscious.

* * *

2130 Etruria Avenue   
Heather Starr

Heather wasn't worried about the leg injury. People survived them all the time.

Heather was worried about the fact that Mia hit her head so hard on the fall. That wasn't good at all, especially with her leg bleeding enough blood to fill a lake. The bullet must have passed through completely, or else it would have acted as a plug.

The detective immediately abandoned any idea of chasing the criminals. She began examining her girlfriend's leg while trying to keep Mia awake with conversation. But the purple haired woman didn't seem to be registering anything she said.

Heather pulled out a knife from her pocket and cut the sleeve off her shirt. Creating a shoddy makeshift bandage, Heather began to apply pressure so as to stop the bleeding.

Mia tensed immediately and Heather could see the pain on her face. The blond woman felt horrible for being the cause of that pain, but she had no choice.

"Heather!" came Legault's voice from somewhere behind her.

Heather didn't pay him any attention, Mia's eyes began to close.

"Mia! Don't close your eyes!" shouted Heather in full panic.

Mia's eyes closed.

" _Shit!"_  swore Heather loudly.

"We've got a stretcher, Heather, stand away for a second," Legault said, much closer this time and sounding out of breath.

Heather stood away while some medical people lifted her carefully onto a stretcher. The blonde grabbed Mia's hand after she was on the stretcher and refused to let go. She rode in the ambulance the entire way, never letting go of her girlfriend's hand.

* * *

?   
Farina Dale

"Lock and load," said Stefan.

Farina, the newest member of Stefan's team cocked her sniper rifle. The sound of the others loading their guns pierced the quiet that had previously been there. Mark loaded both his pistols. Kris readied his shotgun.

Sigurd opened his laptop.

And Stefan had his handgun in his hand. The SHEPHERDs stood outside a very fine mansion. Under the cover of darkness, of course.

One of YIA's local operatives reported seeing a man matching Robin's description entering said mansion. And according to YIA records, this mansion belonged to a Mr. Kellam Anderson. And it also was the location where the Fireman had been sent by Stefan.

"Positions," Stefan said.

The team dispersed. Sigurd went down the street where their van was. He had needed to get near to hack the wifi and see where the outer cameras were. Stefan and Kris went around the back. Mark was to wait until Sigurd had control and sneak through a front window once he did. Farina's spot was in a tall tree with her sniper rifle.

"Good luck," she whispered to Mark.

"Ha, I don't need luck," Mark said with a smirk. "I've got a trench coat. That makes me badass."

"That is going to your head," Farina rolled her eyes and began to head to her position as Mark did the same.

The Observer climbed the large tree and got in position.

* * *

Anderson Mansion: YIA Van   
Sigurd di'Arganan

Sigurd hummed to himself as clicked away on his keyboards of the multiple computers in front of him.

The Hacker took control of the network. Hopefully either Anderson didn't have a Hacker on hand, or they sucked enough that they didn't notice him.

Sigurd's phone began to ring. He sighed, and answered it, "Hello Tiltyu."

" _What's up Siggy?"_ Tiltyu cheerfully asked.

"Tiltyu…" Sigurd mumbled. "I'm on a job."

" _Oh darn! I'm sorry, ya forgive me, right?"_ Tiltyu said, suddenly sounding distressed.

Sigurd chuckled, "Yes, I'll call you when it's over."

He hung up. His wife could a handful, but at least he could be honest with her. Not many people came after Sigurd. Hackers usually attracted the least amount of enemies.

" _We're you just on a phone?"_ Stefan asked via the com link.

"Yes," Sigurd said, fiddling with the cameras.

" _Never do that again,"_ Stefan said sharply and coldly.

"Cameras are ours. We're clear," Sigurd said. Then he noticed two unfamiliar people moving on camera, "Stef, we got company. Looks like some hired guns."

* * *

Anderson Mansion: Basement   
Kellam Anderson

Kellam licked his lips with anticipation. He almost had to physically restrain himself from killing the two men in front of him outright.

No, he would savor it.

Kellam had caught the pricks that he'd missed a few months back. Now it was time for his revenge.

"Let's play a game. It's called 'Who Gets Killed?'" Kellam smirked ferociously. "I'll kill one of you, then I'll let the other go, but you choose who gets to go free."

Donny Winchester and Volug Collins both were tied to chairs in the middle of the basement. Neither had taken long to subdue.

"You're going to have to kill me then," Volug said. "Donny goes free."

"Volug, what're ya sayin'?! I ain't gonna be the one t' go free!" Donny exclaimed.

Volug shook his head, "You're the one with a girlfriend. I don't have any attachments."

"I…I…" Donny attempted. "I'm sure ya got somethin'!"

Volug looked at Kellam, "Kill me."

Kellam lifted his revolver to Volug's head and fired. The force of the shot knocked Volug's chair over.

"Now Donny, he said you have a girlfriend?" Kellam said, a feral smirk beginning to appear on his face.

Kellam could see Donny realizing what the Assassin could do with this information.

"Sir," came a voice as two pairs of footsteps walked down the basement steps. A man and a woman stepped into the light. The man had spoken before and he continued, "Where are you?"

"I'm right here," Kellam said, not taking his eyes off Donny. He was enjoying the fear in the HBI agent's eyes.

"Oh right, sorry," Zihark apologized. He was just a simple Hitter that Sterling had hired. Kellam's employer had been here briefly, but that was just to discuss the next steps of the plan with Kellam. And to drop these two off. "But we came to tell you they're here."

"Five of 'em," the Observer said. Her name was Nephenee, and her reputation preceded her. She had yet to take off her sweatshirt hood. Kellam didn't care why, so long as she did her job.

"Excellent," Kellam said. He walked behind Donny's chair and used a knife to cut the rope that bound him. "Now Donny, don't struggle. Or I'll shoot you and Volug will have died for nothing, you hear?"

Donny nodded and Kellam began dragging him up the stairs to the front door of the mansion. "Now here's what's going to happen," Kellam said with false sweetness. "I'm going to open up this door. You're going to walk out slowly and take your time. If you run, I shoot you in the back."

Donny nodded and Kellam opened the door and gestured for him to walk out. Donny began to walk out of the house slowly. The Assassin managed to get a rough estimate of where each agent was from their reactions to Donny walking out. Be it a bush shifting or a breath being drawn.

Kellam raised his revolver and fired, shooting Donny in the back. The bullet was a direct shot to the heart, it went straight through him and Donny fell over, unmoving.

"Thought you said you wouldn't shoot him?" Zihark frowned.

"I lied," Kellam said. "Now you go watch our special guest. Nephenee, you take the agents in the front yard. I'll take the two in the back."

* * *

Anderson Mansion: Front Yard   
Mark Strife

Mark watched in horror as Donny fell to the ground, dead. There was no questioning as to if he were alive, because no one survived unless Kellam Anderson intended it.

"Sig, what're we up against?" Mark whispered from his hiding spot along the side of the house.

" _Nephenee Rhodes, sniper for hire. She prefers to act from a vantage point. She'll be up on the roof more likely than not. I'll try to distract her,"_ Sigurd said.

Mark sighed, damn Observers. Always shooting from a distance.

Then again, he was dating an Observer. Though Farina only shot holes in his wallet.

" _Mark,"_  said Farina.  _"Start running around."_

"You want me to get killed?" Mark asked in disbelief.

" _Of course not. Now go run around like a chicken,"_ Farina ordered.

"Is this for your own sick amusement?" grumbled Mark.

" _Partially."_

At least she was honest.

Mark jumped out from his hiding place, running like mad across the yard. He darted back and forth constantly to make himself harder to hit. Three bullets fired in rapid succession at him.

Then Sigurd decided to turn on the sprinklers.

"I hate this job!" shouted Mark as he heard several more bullets. If his trench coat got hit…! Mark would be a very unhappy Grifter.

" _Shut up!"_ shouted Farina.

Mark kept running like his life depended on it. Which it did.

There was a bang. Said bang was followed by a scream. Despite the situation Mark stopped running and pressed a finger to his ear, "Farina?"

For a horrible moment, there was no answer.

Then,  _"…If I had been killed, and you had stopped running you'd be dead."_

"I love you too," grinned Mark.

* * *

Anderson Mansion: Back Yard   
Kris Holst

Kris cracked his knuckles as he looked at his opponent. Thankfully, the target didn't have any guns. Neither did Kris, but he'd stand the best chance in hand to hand combat. Kellam Anderson with a gun was like a nuclear bomb falling from the sky.

"Hello Kris, long time no see," said Kellam with a smirk. "Been a while, hasn't it?" he said with mock care.

"Been a while since you left the WIA, you mean," Kris said darkly. That's right, Kellam Anderson used to be one of the good guys.

"Well…they got boring. And I was too good to waste away doing that shit," Kellam shrugged.

"I guess we better do this then," Kris said, taking a stance. Right foot forward, apply weight to said foot. Right arm out in blocking position, left ready for a hard punch to the lower gut.

" _Keep him engaged until I give the signal,"_  said Stefan in Kris' ear.

Kellam put his left foot back and both fists up like a boxer. The Assassin distributed his weight evenly.

Kris frowned, and adjusted his stance. His left foot turned ninety degrees. This way he'd slide backwards less and be able to counter attack with more ease.

Kellam chuckled, "That's so like you."

Kris was puzzled, "What-"

Kris never saw it coming, which was Kellam's MO. Kellam's fist hit Kris in the gut. The blue haired Hitter slid backward, but thanks to his stance it wasn't as far as it would've been. But it didn't matter, Kris still slid and Kellam capitalized on that. A foot hit Kris in the kneecap.

Kris fell to one knee, but used that time to recover from Kellam's first hit. Kris blocked Kellam's next three punches with some ease and even managed to throw one of his own.

Kellam knocked the punch aside and stepped back out of Kris' range. The Hitter jumped up, getting back on his feet. Kellam roundhouse kicked him at that moment, knocking him clean off his feet.

"Oh dear, you done yet?" smirked Kellam. "I thought YIA was supposed to be good at getting the job done."

"Heh…just getting started," said Kris.

* * *

Anderson Mansion: Living Room   
Stefan Gerrard

Stefan stepped into the living room without a single care for caution.

The first thing he saw was Ishtar strapped to a chair, gagged. And Zihark O'Riely stood between him and her.

"Can't let you go any further," said the Hitter.

"Oh, fuck off," Stefan growled.

Zihark came forward with a punch aimed for Stefan's neck. The Director grabbed Zihark's hand at the fist and wrist with both hands. Stefan twisted it and bent it over his shoulder. Zihark gasped in sudden pain, his chest was now pressed up against Stefan's back.

Perfect.

Stefan jerked his head backward and smashed it into O'Riely's head. The Hitter crumpled to the floor.

The green haired man ran a hand through his hair, getting it back how he liked it. He proceeded to ungag Ishtar and begin to untie her.

"Thanks," she said, giving Stefan a small smile.

Stefan grunted in reply, concentrating on the ropes.

"You okay Stef? You seem different," asked Ishtar.

"I'm fine," Stefan said sharply.

Ishtar let the topic drop, "Who's in the field today?"

"Myself, Kris, Mark, Farina and Sigurd," Stefan said getting the ropes undone.

Ishtar didn't say anything. Instead, as quick as lightning, reached into Stefan's suit jacket and pulled out his pistol. She turned on the spot and shot Zihark through the head as he began to stand up. Zihark stopped moving.

"Here," Ishtar handed the gun back to Stefan. "Now let's get out of here."

* * *

Anderson Mansion: Back yard   
Kellam Anderson

Kellam took a punch from Kris to his abdomen. The Assassin shrugged it off and blocked Kris' next punch.

Kris jumped back and pressed a finger to his ear. Kellam's eyes narrowed and he began to close the distance between them.

But he hadn't acted quickly enough, Kris reached to his belt and removed something from it. There was a grenade in his hand. Kris pulled the pin.

A smoke grenade.

Kellam was blinded. Swearing, he tensed, expecting an attack. When one didn't come, Kellam growled.

_That coward!_

"You're dead Kris! You hear me!? You're  _dead!_ " Kellam screamed in frustration.

* * *

The False Friend Job  
Mission:  **Accomplished**


	12. The Family Feud Job: Part I

Job #5: The Family Feud

Part I

Ylisstol: Sacaen Mafia Mansion   
Guy Edge

"Open the door," spoke Guy's boss is his usual calm manner after they'd heard the knock.

Guy reached forward and opened the door. "Come in," he said to the two people waiting outside the door.

Guy turned back to his previous position in the room. Said room was dimly lit, traditional Sacaen rugs colored the floor and the room smelled like Sacaen cigars. The Sacaen family had a very long history, tracing to back when they were a tribal people. Now, with all the mixed marriages, the only true blooded Sacaens were Dayan, Rath and Sue. And that was something they took extreme pride in. And also why a mixed blood like Guy was forced to be a guard.

The first to walk in was a tall man with an eye patch. Haar Vard stood taller than everyone else in the room. While Guy admittedly was on the shorter side, Dayan Sacae, his son Rath and the other guard Karel were not. Had Guy not been aware of Karel's competence, he'd have been worried about the tall man with a suit the color of night.

A woman followed him in. It was Haar's wife, Jill Vard. She was much younger than Haar, and quite a bit shorter comparative to the very tall man. In contrast to her husband, she wore a mere red shirt that wasn't fancy. It wasn't hard to tell who the leader of their crew was.

"Mr. Vard, I'm pleased you could answer my call," Dayan said, gesturing to the two chairs in front of his desk. The man was Guy's boss, and head of the Sacaen Mafia. Probably one of the most feared underground organizations in the world. And that was saying something when the world contained Plegia in it.

Haar yawned, "When the local mafia asks to see you, it's usually something I listen to. Especially when it's you guys." The couple took their seats and waited expectantly. Though Haar looked half asleep, enough so that Jill had to nudge him. Several times.

"I'm sure you two are wondering why I invited you here," Dayan began. He was quickly interrupted.

"Get on with it, old man," muttered Rath. Rath Sacae was the heir to family, following in Dayan's footsteps, from attire to cutthroat personality. He scared Guy almost as much as Karel. Except Karel was a psychopath.

Dayan glared at Rath, and turned back to the visitors, "You two, and who ever you've brought along to this city, are thieves. And you're going to rob something in  _my_ city. I think you can see what the issue is quickly becoming."

Haar yawned, again, "Nope. Not seeing it."

Dayan glared at him, "This is my city. Nothing happens without me knowing about it. And whatever you plan to steal, I either get eighty percent or you clear out. No negotiations."

Jill shook her head, "It's not in our financial interests to do that."

"Oh?" chuckled Dayan. "You either agree to my deal, or…well…it's getting dark out. Bad things happen at night, and it's a long ride back to where you're staying."

Haar suddenly looked very awake and leveled a gaze at Dayan, "If you touch any of my people, you will regret it."

"Maybe," said Rath from the corner, a grin that was bordering feral on his face.

Haar stood up with Jill and filed out. Guy watched them without moving. If the Chief didn't ask him to do something, he didn't do it. Besides, if they were going to be killed, Karel would gladly do it.

"Karel, follow them. When they think they're safe, strike. You know what to do," Dayan commanded, a hint of a smile gracing his features.

Excitement flickered in the man's eyes. Guy inwardly shuddered, that man was plain scary. Karel left the room silently.

"Son, how are the preparations coming?" Dayan said, giving Rath his full attention. Guy was used to being ignored. And it was good pay, so it didn't really matter. Dayan would give him his full attention soon.

"The wedding will be on schedule," said Rath with certainty. "Lyndis won't back out. She's in love with me."

"She better not, I'm tired of her family trying to take on ours. They don't stand a chance up against us. They're such a nuisance, damn halfbreed mongrels," Dayan complained.

"Just find their hideout after the wedding and send Karel in there. Maybe with Sue, or Fir," Rath suggested. "Or maybe you should go in there and get your ass killed. Then a competent man can take control of this city." At that last remark, Guy could've cut the tension in the room with a knife.

"Boy…" growled Dayan. "Do not test me. In time, Sue could be a suitable heir. I don't have to keep you alive. While you are convenient, there are others who could fulfil your position."

Rath merely chuckled and settled back into his chair, "If that makes you sleep at night, then think that, father."

"Guy!" barked Dayan, clearly annoyed with his son and looking for a topic to occupy himself with. "Tell me, what are the YPD's actions as of late? Any indication that they're going to interfere with the wedding?"

Guy was a mole in the YPD. He reported to Dayan about what was happening within the precinct. And like a perfect mole, no one suspected him at the YPD.

"There have been no mentions of taking a stand against us. All that business with the plane bombing a few months back has still got the YPD stressed, making sure it won't happen again," Guy reported. "YPD is watching for threats from the outside instead of the inside."

Dayan nodded, "Good. Keep up with the good work, Mother Earth and Father Sky help you if you fail me."

Guy nodded. The Chief wouldn't kill him unless forced to. Guy was too valuable. It had taken ages to turn someone in the YPD to his cause.

"Now, we need to start planning for after the wedding…"

* * *

Ylisstol: Outskirts   
Haar Vard

Haar pulled the car into the driveway of the abandoned house at around midnight. It made a perfect hideout for his heist team and was Haar's preferred strategy for wherever his team was. No one watched an abandoned house, and aside from the occasional kid that decided to check it out, no one ever bothered his team.

"You think they followed us?" Jill asked, quietly. She looked worried, constantly flinching at every passing car and taking frequent looks over her shoulder.

Haar shrugged, "Maybe. Maybe not."

"That's not exactly reassuring," frowned Jill. Haar didn't blame her.

Haar stepped out of the car and casually looked around. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary. They would be safe.

Haar yawned. It was late, and he wanted to sleep. If someone came by to shoot them, they could do as they pleased. Because getting in the house would trigger the motion sensors that Edward had set around the house. And Haar would get some sleep. Everyone wins.

"Finally! You two lovebirds are back! Are you guys always this slow?" growled a new voice.

Haar and Jill turned to see Lethe, a new member of the team as of two months ago joined them outside. Jill chuckled, "Only when you're involved, Lethe."

"Trust me, I do not want to be involved," growled the woman. She was irritable, but good at what she did.

"Where's Edward?" Haar asked through a yawn.

"Sleeping. He's taking after you too much," said Lethe with disapproval.

Haar chuckled, "Great minds think alike." And then he yawned.

Lethe shook her head, "The only thing you're great at is sleeping."

Jill rolled her eyes, "C'mon you two. Let's get planning, big day tomorrow."

Haar and Lethe nodded and began to walk into the house.

The noise of a car driving rather fast began to sound through the quiet street.

Haar suddenly felt more awake, and strained his ears, trying to figure out why someone was driving so fast…

Towards them.

Haar's eye widened, and had he still had his other eye, it would have too. Haar could only think of one reason that a car would be driving so fast towards them.

Sacaen Mafia.

"Get down!" shouted Haar and tackled his wife to the ground. They hit the grass roughly, Jill crying out having been startled.

The black sports car slowed down ever so slightly as it passed under a bright streetlamp. The window dropped down, and a man that Haar identified as Karel stuck a gun out the window. A machine gun.

The bullets let loose. Luckily, it was dark and they soared over Haar and Jill. Luck was on his side.

Lethe wasn't so lucky.

The car picked up speed and sped away, leaving as if nothing had happened.

Haar took his arms away from their protective hold over Jill. "Are you okay?" Haar said, completely awake.

Jill nodded and Haar stood up, and looked at Lethe.

She was covered in bullet wounds. Haar's dark attire had saved him from being seen like Lethe's light attire got her killed. By the looks of it, Lethe had died instantly. Judging from her wounds, it was likely better that way.

"Was someone shooting?" said a sleepy voice as Edward poked a head out the door.

Haar and Jill looked at each other, the former deathly calm and the latter frightened. Jill hadn't been in a situation like this before.

"Pack everything up. We're relocating. And then we'll report this to the police," Haar said. Edward took one glance at Lethe, flinched and nodded, and went about packing up.

"She didn't deserve this," Jill said, voice filled with emotion. She had liked the new girl.

"Agreed. And that's why we're going on a revenge mission. Forget the job, we're going to make them pay," Haar growled. No one touched his team. He'd said that to the mafia and they hadn't listened.

Now it was time to show them not to cross Haar Vard lightly.

* * *

Ylisstol: Hospital   
Mia Meridas

"How's the leg?" said Laurent, the doctor that had been taking care of Mia for the past two weeks. He walked around the typical hospital room, examining everything from the computer screens to the cast on her leg.

"I tried walking on it this morning, it didn't hurt with the crutches," Mia said, anxious to get out of there.

"How much longer are we looking as Doc?" Heather asked from her chair in the corner. She'd been by just about everyday.

"Hmm…" he pushed his glasses up his nose. "The wound was not serious, as far as bullet wounds go. It missed any major muscles and arteries, so you can count yourself lucky Ms. Meridas. If you feel like you could walk on it with crutches, then I'll likely only need to keep you here a day or two more. Provided you don't do anything strenuous!"

Heather's phone beeped. She flipped it out and narrowed her eyes, "…Hey, Doc, any chance of her getting out now? Like, today?"

"Er…what, ma'am?" Laurent asked quizzically.

"Well…we've got a big assignment coming up. And yes, I know, no field work for Mia. But it'd be very important to her career if she were even on the sidelines in this next case," Heather said, turning begging eyes on the doctor. "It's a big case."

Mia secret suspected that Heather just wanted to get her out of there so she could go back to kissing her passionately. Not that Mia minded, of course.

"Hmph, I suppose," Laurent said. "But! But Ms. Meridas, you  _will_  be coming in for weekly checkups. And you will not be out and about getting shot at! Understood?"

Mia nodded, a small grin on her face.

Laurent whispered something that sounded suspiciously like, "Women." Then he cleared his throat and announced, "I'm going to do some last minute paperwork for this…unconventional agreement you have me under." Then he left.

"He says that like we forced him. But we're just two innocent women, looking out for ourselves," Heather fluttered her eyelashes.

"You're far from innocent," muttered Mia, successfully keeping a smirk from her face.

"And after we spend nights together, you are?" Heather grinned evilly.

Mia blushed, and distracted herself by gathering up her get well cards. Her favorite was the one from Matthew that said, "You're not a true detective until you've been shot!"

"Are you sure you're feeling alright? It's only been two weeks," Heather asked worriedly.

Mia shrugged, "It's not like the bullet hit bone or anything. It may hurt a bit, but I can deal with it." Mia was lying, it still hurt some. But sitting in a hospital bed was against everything Mia did. She wanted to be outdoors, taking on the criminals of the world. Not lazily lying in a bed.

Heather rolled her eyes, "Whatever floats your boat. So long as you don't hurt yourself."

Mia nodded and got to business, "Now, what's this case that the boss has?"

Heather sighed, "His name is Stahl, not boss, when're you going to actually call him that?"

"When I become a detective." Mia motioned for Heather to go on.

"So apparently, last night four people were staying in an abandoned house and they had angered the mafia. The Sacaen Mafia. One of its members did a drive by and killed one of the four. Now the remaining three want revenge," Heather explained.

"…We're taking on the Sacaen Mafia?"

"Mia, you got shot in the leg, not the ear. You heard me," grinned Heather.

At that moment, Laurent returned and Mia began to suffer through a long lecture of what to do and not to do. Mia ignored most of it, due to Heather making faces behind Laurent's back.

* * *

Ylisstol: Sacaen Mafia Mansion   
Karla Sharp

Karla tried to keep a level gaze with her older brother. Even amongst family, Karel was scary. Though psychopaths tended to be.

"The Chief wants to see you," Karel said in his smooth voice that didn't suit him. For looks, yes it suited him. But personality…it didn't suit a murderer. A psychopath.

"Did he say why?" Karla's soft voice suited her appearance and personality.

Though, most questioned that given how she was mixed up with the mafia.

"No. If he asks you to kill someone, let me know," Karel said, bloodlust creeping into his voice.

Karla sighed, nodded, and began on her way. She didn't like killing, and her brother usually voluntarily took her place. Karla suspected the Chief only kept her around due to the fact that she was able to control Karel to an extent. And that she was good at obtaining information.

After all, she'd been an informant for HBI for several years. Karla only remained because despite what most would believe, she cared for Karel. He was her brother, as insane as he was.

When Karla got to the Chief's room, Sue Sacae was waiting outside of it.

"Father is busy," she explained, a hint of steel in her voice. She didn't seem to like whatever was going on behind closed doors. "He told me to tell you to go pick up Lyndis, because she will be spending the following week here leading up to the wedding."

Karla nodded, "Understood."  _Let Mother Earth and Father Sky save that girl,_  Karla thought.  _Rath is a monster, Lyndis will probably end up dead._

On Karla's way to her car, she contemplated the question that had plagued her for years: Should she leave the family?

He answer was always no, she had to keep Karel in check. And he would never go with her, not when he got to kill so many for Dayan.

And yet again, her answer was no.

* * *

Ylisstol: YPD Precinct   
Leila Gryfflet

"How's the leg, Mia?" Leila asked with a slight bit of worry.

The purple haired woman shrugged, "It's fine. Or fine enough, at least."

Leila laughed, "It's better than getting shot in the chest, I still feel that bullet hole occasionally." Obviously, it was all healed after so many months, but it seemed to come back to haunt Leila at the most inconvenient times.

Stahl walked in the room, last to arrive. He looked as absent minded as ever and held his typical muffin. Though this time, it was a chocolate muffin.

_Excellent choice, Detective Inspector,_  Leila thought.

Legault raised a hand and sat patiently. It took Stahl several moments to notice him, being preoccupied with his muffin, "Legault?"

"So Matthew tells me we're taking on the Sacaen Mafia," Legault states.

"I fail to see a question in there, agent," Stahl joked. He seemed pretty happy, though if it was because of the case or the muffin, Leila couldn't tell.

"Question is, are we insane?" said the HBI agent.

"Depends who we're talking about," muttered Leila loudly in good humor.

"That hurts, Leila," Matthew and Heather said at the same time. Their respective girlfriends laughed.

"Back on topic, do we even have a plan?" Legault demanded.

Stahl chuckled, "Nope, you do."

"Me!?"

"Yes you," answered Stahl. "We're going to see what the HBI has on the mafia. We'll see what we can use and go from there."

"Won't work," said a new voice from the doorway.

Six heads turned at the sound of a new voice. Leila recognized the new man as Haar Vard, the one who had them gunning for the mafia.

"Why not?" Stahl said, genuinely interested.

"Getting them into court on something they did a while ago wouldn't amount to anything. Their lawyers would be too good and the judge would probably be bought off. We'd need to catch them in an incriminating situation with a whole force of HBI agents waiting to arrest them on the spot. They wouldn't be able to plan anything crooked that we couldn't stop," Haar said.

"We?" Matthew asked.

Haar glared at Matthew, "If you think that my team and I will sit back, you have another thing coming. We're going to help take down and destroy the organization that killed our friend."

"Fair enough," Stahl said. "But that still leaves us at nothing. Again."

Legault cleared his throat, "Well…there's the possibility that HBI has someone on the inside, waiting to act."

"How likely?" Leila asked curiously.

"Do you want an optimistic answer, or a pessimistic one?" Legault said.

"It won't hurt to check," Stahl said lightly.

The rest agreed. Haar left to grab the rest of his team from wherever they were hiding. With nothing to do, Leila laid her head on Matthew's shoulder. Planning this kind of plan wasn't her forte. Though Matthew and Heather contributed a great deal. Leila's gunshot buddy Mia looked like she was trying to follow the rapid discussion of the plan, but quickly became lost.

At this point, Leila barely tried.

After all, the Sacaen Mafia wasn't like the Black Fang. Not something she was familiar with in the least.

Legault, who had stepped away from the discussion to make a phone call to his boss, returned with good news, "We've got an informant in the snake's den. Though for her to cooperate, we'll have to do some stuff for her."

"Who is she?" Mia asked.

Legault shook her head, "This is something that you should pick up rather quickly for this business, an informant in a case this important has to be kept secret. This room is not secure, and simply mentioning her name could compromise her. Especially with the Sacaen Mafia, you never know who's listening."

"I'm guessing we need to relocate?" Stahl suggested.

Legault nodded and began to grab his coat.

Leila sighed. She'd  _just_ gotten comfortable.

* * *

YPD Precinct   
Guy Edge

Guy swore quietly. He'd been  _this_ close to finding out who this informant was.

Guy had listened at the door of the conference room the entire meeting. He had a general idea of their plan, though some of it he didn't understand. Guy also had a fair analysis of each of the members of this team.

The main two, Detective Inspector Stahl and the HBI agent were the two to worry about. Detective Matthew, Detective Heather and the trainee Mia were jokes. The only one that puzzled him was Leila, but he didn't have time to waste on that.

He had a phone call to make.

Guy had to tell the Chief that the informant was a woman.

* * *

Ylisstol: Sacaen Mafia Mansion   
Karla Sharp

"Here we are," Karla said calmly as she pulled into the driveway.

Lyndis looked at the large mansion with wonder. It had large hedges that encompassed the grounds along with a wrought iron fence. A long driveway extended to the street from the garage that connected to the house. Everything from giant majestic fountains to creative hedge cuttings ordained the yard.

"Lyn," Karla said softly. She'd asked Karla to call her that.

"Hmm?" acknowledged the green haired woman.

"This is a bad choice you're making, marrying Rath," Karla whispered, as if afraid to get caught.

"Why?" Lyn asked skeptically.

"He's a monster," Karla said with certainty. She'd seen the bodies after Rath was done with them.

Lyn shook her head, "That can't be, I've gotten to know him. He wouldn't do anything like that. Or at least, not willingly. He's a good person."

Karla refocused her attention to pulling into her parking place at the mansion.

At least she'd tried.


	13. The Family Feud Job: Part II

The Family Feud Job

Part II

Ylisstol: Sacaen Mafia Mansion   
Rath Sacae

Rath walked, side by side with Lyndis. The yard of the mansion was very well kept, deep green grass, neatly trimmed trees, square hedges…but that was to be expected. When the head of a criminal syndicate owned a mansion, it obviously would be well kept.

"Rath…" Lyndis began. She was clothed in a traditional green Sacaen garment, with hints of Chon'sinian influence. Lyndis' family was half Sacae, half Chon'sin. That certainly counted for something, the Sacaen family had close ties with some Chon'sin families.

"Yes?" Rath asked softly. They sat together on a bench, right by the large fountain. Lyndis had her head resting on Rath's shoulder. A typical position for them.

"I've been hearing things…" she said, seeming unsure how to phrase what she wanted to say.

Rath remained silent, and nodded his head for her to continue on.

"Some people have been saying you do…bad things," Lyndis said, worried. She ducked her head so as to not meet Rath's eyes.

Rath's serene look on his face slipped, morphing into a look of anger and disgust. Thankfully, Lyndis' head was turned away from him. He quickly regained his composure, "Lyn…I'm sorry to admit that I have. I'm not a saint. But I must say that I do not like what I've had to done. But I was born into this burden, and until my father passes, there's nothing I can do about it."

Lyndis nodded, "I'm sorry to hear that. I knew there was more to it than what everyone has been saying."

Rath nodded, "There's always more to a story. And at least one good thing came from this burden."

Lyndis cocked her head to the side in question.

"You," Rath said.

Lyndis rolled her eyes, "That was incredibly cliché."

Rath paused and thought about it, "Yes, I suppose that was."

Lyndis chuckled, "Points for effort, at least."

Rath laughed and kissed her.

* * *

Ylisstol: YPD Precinct   
Guy Edge

"Is this really necessary?" Fir asked, clearly annoyed. But then again, she usually was annoyed at Guy.

Guy nodded, watching the purple haired woman walk around the precinct, "Just be patient Fir, the Chief wants us to follow her. Keep tabs, you know?"

"You know as well as I do that's not what we're doing," Fir grumbled.

"And I, unlike you, am not stupid. We're in a public place, do you even pay attention to things like that?"

Fir shrugged and Guy paid less attention to her. She was the youngest of the three Sharps, Karel being the oldest, and then Karla. She didn't have the cruelty of her oldest sibling, nor did she have the subtleness of her older sister. But she did have determination, something the Chief valued.

The Chief had assigned them to the task of watching the YPD team. Guy was there because he was a natural choice for the matter, it was easy for him to make up an excuse if he was caught snooping. Fir was there for backup muscle, something she enjoyed pointing out to Guy because he was quite weak.

But Guy had the last laugh when their cover dictated she was his girlfriend.

Fir was not pleased.

"She's moving," Guy said, not even looking up from his newspaper. To the average eye, Guy was enrapt with an article about vacuum cleaners. Out of his peripherals, he could see Leila Gryfflet leaving the precinct.

"Plan?" Fir asked.

"No need. In twenty seconds, we stand up and walk out together," Guy said nonchalantly as he flipped a page in his paper. No more vacuum cleaners.

Fir nodded, and the two sat there. Twenty seconds passed, and Guy stood up. Fir followed suit and the two walked out the door (Guy held it open for her, always the gentleman). Fir was probably the only woman who would blatantly glare at him for that though.

"Hold my hand," Guy whispered as they began to follow Leila down the city streets.

"What!?" Fir said loudly.

If he could have slapped her without making a scene, Guy would have. "We're establishing a cover, now hold my damn hand!" he whispered. "Do you want to do the job? You know how the Chief is with those who fail."

Fir growled and grabbed his hand reluctantly. They walked, following Leila, making sure to keep thirty feet between them and their target. Twenty if it got rather crowded with people in the city.

"To what end is this?" Fir growled after a few minutes.

"And here I thought you were smart," Guy said, annoyed.

"I am, but this isn't my kind of work."

"The minute you want to go back to beating people senseless is fine with me," Guy said. "Because that plan works out just  _great_ every time."

"It's an art," said Fir. "You have to be good at it to be skilled."

"That generally applies to most professions."

"You know what I meant!"

"At least there's an upside to our arguing," Guy observed.

"And what's that?" Fir asked with mock care.

"We sound like a legitimate couple," Guy smirked.

Fir looked like she wanted to punch him. Even if she would, Guy was fast enough to get out of the way. Usually.

Laughing, Guy refocused his attention on Leila. She was picking up her pace.

"She's moving," Guy said, serious once again. "Let's go."

* * *

Ylisstol: Streets   
Leila Gryfflet

Leila wasn't stupid. She never had been.

But the two on her tail were doing a very good job at making her look stupid. Every time she tried to take a subtle look over her shoulder, the couple looked legitimate.

Plus it had taken several minutes for her to notice them. Not the kind of behavior of an ex-Fang.

But Leila knew what gum on her shoe looked like.

And so she did the most natural thing, she called her boyfriend.

"Matthew?" Leila spoke into the phone as she ever so slightly increased her pace.

" _Hmm?"_  her boyfriend said sleepily. It  _was_ rather late at night after all.

"I'm being followed," she said quietly, just in case her pursuers were getting closer. "I need you to meet me somewhere."

" _Where?"_  he said, sounding more awake.

"Thracia Street," Leila said.

" _Got it, don't hang up,"_  Matthew said as Leila heard him moving about rapidly on his end.

Leila spoke her assent and kept walking toward her destination. It wasn't far, only about a five minute walk from her current location.

The detective snuck another discreet look over her shoulder. The two people were still following her. Not that she expected any less, but it was nice to hope.

" _I'm on my way,"_  Matthew said.

Leila started to walk faster. Her pursuers picked up their pace as well.

"Better be quick about it," she muttered.

Before she knew it, Leila felt something stab into the side of her neck.

_Was that a bug?_ she thought to herself as she brought a hand up to her neck. She felt a small hole, like from a needle.

_A needle?_

Leila turned her head to see the two people who'd been following her right behind her. Then she began to get dizzy.

Leila fell backward and felt herself get caught by one of the two.

She blacked out.

* * *

Ylisstol: Thracia Street   
Matthew Brooks

Matthew pulled his car right up to Thracia Street. He looked around for his girlfriend. She wouldn't be hard to pick out, even if there were a lot of people. Which there weren't.

After a few minutes of nothing, Matthew got out of his car to look around.

It was getting dark out, and even with the streetlights aid, Matthew wasn't able to see Leila anywhere.

As he began to walk down the street, he felt his foot hit something. Annoyed, Matthew looked down to see a cellphone. He bent over to pick it up.

It was Leila's. Matthew had given that phone case to her for her birthday several years ago.

Matthew's heart began to pound. It took only a few seconds for him to connect the dots.

Leila had been kidnapped.

Matthew's phone was in his hand in a matter of seconds, and he was already dialing a number.

"Stahl? I need your help, Leila's been kidnapped!" Matthew said urgently to Stahl.

" _Mmm…say that again?"_ his boss yawned. Matthew hadn't been the only one already asleep.

"Dammit Stahl, meet me at the precinct! Grab those new people too!" Matthew said, practically flying into his car.

* * *

YPD Precinct   
Matthew Brooks

"But who would take her?" proposed Heather. The rest of the detective squad and Haar's crew sat around the conference room table. They had gotten there just five minutes ago where Matthew had explained the situation.

"You guys did just start on the Mafia case, it could've been them?" Edward, the third of Haar's team asked.

"Yes, but how did they know we were gunning for them?" Stahl said, perplexed. "They'd have to have someone watching us."

"Is it possible that they did?" Haar asked.

"Logically it would make sense that an organization such as the Sacaen Mafia would have some sort of presence in the local law enforcement," Legault surmised. "In fact, I'd say it was probably them. Even without logic, we've all seen movies."

"So not only do we have a kidnapping, but a mole too? Dammit, we're just so lucky," Heather said, her typical sarcasm dripping from her voice.

"Heather, there's probably more than one mole," Mia said helpfully.

"Just because it's true, doesn't mean you have to say it aloud," Heather grumbled.

Jill chuckled despite the situation, "But that makes it rather straightforward, right? The YPD must have some sort of intelligence on the matter."

"I'll go find the Chief!" declared Stahl as he stood up and left the room.

Matthew sat quietly, looking out the window of the conference room. It was night, but in the city, there was always something to look at.

Something to get distracted with.

Matthew massaged his temples, trying to keep focused on the task at hand, which was finding Leila. His girlfriend.

And if the ring in his pocket were going to ever mean anything, future fiancée.

Not regretting the fact that he should have done something. And a battle in his mind waged over that.

_You were her boyfriend! You could have done something!_

_She is a trained detective, she doesn't need a personal guard._

_Then what good were you to her!?_

_That's not the problem at hand, Leila's life is in danger!_

_Because you were an idiot and didn't do anything. She could be dead!_

_She isn't._

_She's gone. And it was your fault._

_Shut up._

_You know it's true._

_SHUT UP!_

A door opened, breaking Matthew out of his thoughts. In addition to Stahl, two other people walked in. The first was Gregor Marshall.

"There is a problem here, yes?" Gregor said.

Matthew bit back a scathing reply. Not only would that not help, but that was ultimately his boss. And now was just not the time.

"Leila's been kidnapped, so yes, a bit of a problem," Heather rolled her eyes. There always had to be sarcasm, no matter the situation.

"Ha! Gregor thinks Leila is a strong girl. She'll be fine, yes?" Gregor laughed heartily.

Matthew's angry response was cut off by Stahl, "We need access to any information about the Sacaen Mafia's hideouts that's available."

Gregor chuckled, "Then Gregor says to use this lad here!" Gregor patted the much shorter person next to him on the back. Hard.

"Detective Edge, reporting for duty," said the detective in question.

"Thanks Gregor," Stahl said.

Gregor laughed, "Yes yes, Gregor knows. Now go and bring back Matthew's girl!"

The rest of the people in the room chuckled, except Matthew. Gregor frowned and walked over to the detective in question. He grabbed Matthew's shoulders, "Eh? Gregor told funny joke! Laughter should come, yes?" When Matthew didn't smile, Gregor began shaking the detective, "FORGET THE BAD STUFF! GREGOR SAYS YOU MUST GET ON WITH HAVING THE HAPPINESS! MUST TURN FROWN IN... OTHER DIRECTION!"

Matthew got very dizzy and fell over.

Legault and Heather helped him up. And at that point, even Matthew couldn't help but laugh a little.

Gregor smiled brightly, "Good! Now, Gregor orders team to go!"

Haar's crew left first, followed by Stahl, Mia and Detective Edge.

Legault and Heather made sure Matthew could walk before heading on. But just as they were about to, Matthew grabbed both of them and brought their ears close to his lips.

"Edge is a Sacaen name," Matthew muttered quietly.

Heather looked puzzled, but slowly put the pieces together. Legault, on the other hand, nodded with a grim look in his eyes.

They'd find out what was in store for them soon.

* * *

Ylisstol: Outskirts   
Matthew Brooks

Matthew was crouched next to the door to the house they suspected to hold Leila. It was a surprisingly large house. It was Matthew's job to silently pick the lock on the door.

But Matthew was no Leila, he had no Black Fang work experience. So he'd been trying for a good ten minutes.

Ten minutes that could mean life or death for Leila.

Meanwhile, Edward was supposedly climbing in through the chimney. Matthew didn't ask when the man in question said that was his preferred way of entry.

And then everyone else, just like a good old fashioned police raid, stood behind their cars with pistols pointing at the door.

Very discreet.

_Click!_

Matthew grinned as he sprung the lock. The door swung open slowly as Matthew eased the handle.

With the door hanging wide open, Matthew scurried back to the other officers.

"So here's what we'll do, Edward is on the inside looking for Leila. He'll come out of there and tell us where she is, and then myself, Matthew, Detective Edge, Legault, Heather and Haar will enter the house," Stahl said. "Jill, Edward and Mia will wait outside in case whoever is in there decides to run for it. Clear?"

Everyone nodded, and the seven others present nodded.

They waited silently, or in the case of Mia and Heather, bickered softly.

"I should be going in there with you."

"You really shouldn't, not on that leg."

"I could handle it."

"Like you handle me?"

"…Was that meant to be an innuendo? Because that's how I'm taking it."

"Believe me Mia, everything is an innuendo."

"Really."

"Yeah! Like there's the real clever one on the detective's badge-"

"I'm back!" came a hushed voice. Edward walked up, covered in black ash.

"Damn, you really did go through the fireplace," muttered Heather with slight amazement. Matthew silently agreed, and vowed to take things Edward said more seriously.

"I couldn't find her anywhere, and that means she's in the basement. But she's definitely there, I saw three Sacaen Mafia guys sitting in the kitchen. One was a tall guy with a bandana and black hair, one a woman with freakishly long black hair and the last was a younger woman," Edward said. "That's all I could see in the dark, there wasn't much light."

Detective Edge nodded, "That's Shin, Karla and Fir. We shouldn't have too much of a problem."

And with that, Stahl, Matthew, Detective Edge, Legault, Heather and Haar began to walk toward the doorway.

The doorway opened up into a rather large entry hallway. It let the six of them fit well. They then were confronted by two doors in the hallway. One for the left, the other the right.

Stahl motioned for Matthew and Detective Edge to follow him, whereas Legault, Heather and Haar went the opposite way and through the opposite door.

Matthew kept a careful eye on Edge as Stahl took point and walked softly ahead.

The passed through two rooms without any sign of anyone.

Then suddenly, a gunshot rang out from the opposite side of the house!

There was a brief moment of silence.

Then…

_Bang! Bang! Bang!_

Matthew and Stahl looked at each other and nodded, continuing onward with renewed caution toward the gunfire and doubtless a gunfight.

That is, until Detective Edge wrapped his arm around Stahl's neck and pointed a gun to his head.

"Drop your weapon," he commanded with cold confidence.

Stahl complied quickly.

Matthew on the other hand, searched desperately for a way out. He knew he wasn't a good enough shot to hit Edge with such poor light, not to mention Matthew wasn't the best with guns. Leila was though, but then again if she were there, then the problem would be solved.

"I said drop it!" Edge said with a hard tone.

Matthew nodded and slowly set down the gun.

_Crack!_

Matthew looked up at the sound and saw Edge crumple to the floor. Behind where he had been standing stood a tall woman with long black hair. This had to be Karla. Matthew caught up his gun and pointed it at the woman preparing to shoot.

"Don't shoot," Stahl said, massaging his neck. "This is our informant."

Karla nodded, "I'm here to negotiate."

A scream resounded from the other side of the house. It was a man's.

"Looks like your people got Shin," said Karla. Her voice betrayed no emotion.

Matthew glared apprehensively at Karla as he walked forward, adjusting his arm so it now pointed at Edge.

"Don't shoot him!" Karla exclaimed, stepping between Matthew and Edge.

Matthew really wanted to shoot something.

And even Stahl looked at her funny when she said.

"He's important in the family. You'll need him alive to report what happened here," Karla said. "If you kill him, it could send the rest of them into hiding, and then you'll never get the others."

"And the other person in this house can't report for Edge?" asked Stahl.

There was a crash, the sound of someone jumping through a window. Rapid bursts of gunfire began to sound.

"Because that person is my little sister, and she just escaped. But Guy here," Karla nudged Edge's body, "is trusted by the Chief. Fir isn't."

"But can't we arrest Edge at least?" Matthew asked.

"No," said Stahl. "We're breaking several laws here. It wouldn't hold up." Stahl turned his attention to Karla, "What do you want for your information?"

"I want to be spared any retribution, and same goes for my brother Karel, and little sister Fir. We all go free," she said.

Stahl nodded, "I can arrange that. We're going to have to meet up to discuss our plan. Meet me at noon at this address," Stahl pulled out a pen and paper and wrote down something. "If you're not there tomorrow, I'll be there at that time for an hour every day until you show, deal?"

Karla nodded and took the piece of paper, "Now you need to render me unconscious. Put my body near the basement door though, because that's where the girl is. Make sure to really hit me, Edge needs to wake up first for my plan."

Matthew didn't need to hear anything else. He went right for the door and walked downstairs.

The basement, in comparison to the rest of the house, wasn't very large. It was one room, and all that was in it was a woman tied to a chair.

Matthew wasted no time in closing the distance and getting to work on the bonds that held Leila.

"I knew you'd be here," she said hoarsely. Leila didn't look good.

"Expect anything less?" Matthew said with a grin as he worked quickly.

"Such a devoted boyfriend," Leila chuckled.

"Leila? Can you reach into my pocket?" Matthew said, his grin growing.

Leila, one of her hands unbound, reached into Matthew's pocket and pulled out a small box. When she opened it, she gasped. A rather loud gasp, to be exact.

"Ha! Weren't expecting that, were you?" Matthew laughed as he undid her other hand. "I felt the need to channel my inner Anna."

Leila quickly recovered and whacked Matthew, "You idiot, you should have asked me sooner."

"Hey now, I haven't even asked yet! For all you know, I could just be about to ask your opinion before I give it to Heather!" Matthew said.

"Oh, shut up and marry me," said Leila.

"Saved me the trouble of asking," Matthew grinned as he kissed her.


	14. The Family Feud Job: Part III: Finale

The Family Feud Job

Part III: Finale

Ylisstol   
Stahl Donivore

Stahl ate his muffin like a normal person.

Well, he was normal, but at the moment, he was trying to act as normal as possible.

Sitting in a coffee shop eating a muffin was normal, right?

For someone with a food addiction like Stahl, it was. And having come to the crowded place for the past five days, it certainly felt normal.

Stahl barely reacted when Karla sat down across from him.

"What took you?" he asked nonchalantly, taking a bite from his muffin.

"My cover was almost blown. I had to stabilize it before meeting with you," she said, looking around nervously.

"Relax," Stahl said. "Being nervous does no favors for you."

"That's rather…deep."

"I've been known to have spurts of wisdom on occasion," Stahl said. "But let's get down to business."

Karla nodded as Stahl gave her his full attention. "You want to know how to break the Sacaen Mafia, right?" she said.

"I believe that was implied," Stahl said, setting down his muffin.

"The Sacaen family is unlike a typical mafia family. That is both their weakness and strength. It is made up of completely people of Sacaen descent, or those of Chon'sin. And both groups have a long history of loyalty," Karla said.

"And…?" Stahl said.

"Let me use an analogy. You know what a hydra is, correct?"

"Yes," Stahl said, beginning to get slightly impatient.

"Well, a typical mafia is like a hydra. Kill the boss, two more will rise up and take its place. Those two will fight over territory, money, everything. And pretty soon you've got a gang war. Now with the Sacaen Mafia, the family can only be led by one of pure Sacaen heritage. The regular grunts won't stand for anything else.

"And only a few people fit the bill. Dayan the Chief, his son Rath, and his daughter Sue. With the mafia's extreme loyalty, the ordinary members would find it insulting to follow someone who was not pure. And that is their weakness," Karla said.

"Sounds like a pretty easily exploitable weakness," Stahl commented.

Karla nodded, "They're doing what they can to fix that. Rath is getting married to a woman who is as close to being pure that there is. I imagine that he'll change things once he takes charge."

"And how do we take them down?"

" _You_  need to kill Dayan, Rath, and Sue all at the same time. No arrests. No mistakes. All of them, or the remaining member will hide away and you'll be back on the case in five years," said Karla. "But that's not the main problem you're going to face."

"Then what is?"

"Karel."

"Who?"

"Karel is my brother. He's the reason why no one has bumped off the big three members yet. And when  _I_  tell you that you should be frightened of him, then you should. His idea of fun is running through the streets killing with a machine gun, shooting anything that moves. He's smart and cunning, but most importantly very loyal to Dayan," Karla said.

"And you want us to  _save_ this man?" Stahl clarified.

Karla looked down, "…Yes. He's my family. I can't abandon him."

"If he's that insane, how are we supposed to take him alive?" Stahl asked.

"…I don't know."

"I see," Stahl said without emotion.

"The next meeting will have the entire inner circle tomorrow. That's Dayan, Rath, Sue, Karel, Fir, myself, Guy and two Chon'sin operatives. It's at 749 Kutolah Avenue," Karla said. "I won't show, and neither will Fir. We'll be conveniently caught up an issue that will come up tomorrow."

Stahl nodded, "Alright. I can guarantee yours and Fir's safety then. And that's all."

He stood up and nodded to her, "Good day Karla, and thank you."

Stahl left, leaving Karla to think about what was going to happen.

* * *

YPD Precinct   
Heather Starr

"I don't like it. It may be hypocritical of me to say it, but that isn't the law. It's bad enough what we did a few days ago, but that was to get Leila back. Justice isn't killing criminals, that's what the courts are for," Heather said.

"Like it or not, we'll do what we have to do. This may be the only chance in several years for us to take out the mafia in one fell swoop," Stahl said.

Heather backed down. She didn't like it, but Stahl was her boss.

Mia held her hand sympathetically. Heather smiled at the purple haired woman.

"Heather, I don't like it either, but look at what these people have done. We can't let this stand," Legault said.

Heather nodded. She couldn't wait until this mess was over.

"But first thing first, you may have noticed the lack of Haar's crew?" Stahl addressed the group.

Everyone rolled their eyes. Literally.

It  _was_ fairly obvious.

"I'm leaving them out. We're police, we could manage to get out of this if possible. But if Haar and his group got caught, they'd be going to prison. So no one is going to contact them, correct?" Stahl said, making eye contact with all of them.

They all nodded.

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Guy Edge

Guy stood near the table, standing guard alongside Karel during the meeting.

The building was a small warehouse that the mafia used for smuggling. And meetings.

Several black cars were parked within the complex, creating a circle around the meeting table. At said rectangular table, Dayan sat at the head. On one side, sat Rath and Sue and on the other side a man and a woman, Yen'fey and Say'ri respectively.

"Where are your sisters?" Guy asked Karel quietly.

Karel turned his head slowly towards Guy. The green haired man tried his hardest not to flinch as the cold eyes of the eldest Sharp passed over him.

"They got held up. Some sort of mess over in one of our outposts in the outskirts," Karel said softly. But when Karel said things softly, they only sounded more dangerous.

Guy nodded and turned back to the meeting.

"…next shipment will be on time. The last one was late due to bad weather," Yen'fey spoke.

Dayan nodded, "That better be all there was to it. If I find out there was something else going on…" The threat trailed off.

"Fie! It t'was merely bad weather," Say'ri said angrily.

Rath chuckled, "Of that, I am sure."

Say'ri nodded, unaware of the fact that Rath was mocking her. Yen'fey however, glared at Rath.

Guy sighed, this meeting would certainly take a while.

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Legault Adair

The team arrived at the address silently. From the outside, it looked like a plain old warehouse.

Though the guards in black suits outside were a bit of a giveaway.

Luckily, there were only three of them. Stahl, Legault and Leila were able to take them by surprise and render them unconscious. The guards weren't paying much attention to begin with, so it wasn't much of a feat of skill.

"This is the last chance, if any of you want out, say something now," said Stahl seriously.

No one said anything. They were all aware that if caught, they'd go to jail. Taking the law into one's own hands was heavily frowned upon by the Ylissean courts.

"Good," Stahl said. "We all know the plan, correct?"

Five heads nodded.

"Positions, keep your radios on."

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Legault Adair

One thing was important to know about Legault and his HBI career. And that was that he had passed the physical part of his entrance exam with flying colors.

So when Stahl originally asked him to scale the rafters, he'd asked, "How fast?"

Legault walked on the metal beam carefully, but not slowly. He was quite experienced enough that he didn't have to walk like a beginner. He was past that.

Several feet to his right and on the rafters as well was Leila. Legault was curious about her, because she was just as good as Legault was at this.

He resolved to figure it out later.

It wasn't hard to figure out the meeting place. There was a table set up in the middle of the gigantic room with people.

Legault brought his radio up to his mouth. The force had invested in silent radios a few years back, making the only noise to ever come from them to be voices.

"We're in position. Several cars in here, send Matthew in," breathed Legault. He spoke so quietly, that no one expect those in close proximity could hear him.

Legault drew his gun, but didn't cock it. Leila did the same.

And they waited.

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Matthew Brooks

Matthew stepped through the side entrance door silently. He could see the three black cars on his side of the circle. They blocked the view of all of the mafia members.

Matthew couldn't be seen.

He ducked low and began to creep closer. As Matthew got closer, voices became clearer and Matthew became quieter.

The Detective got to the closest car. As demolitions expert of the team, Matthew knew a lot about bombs. Taking them apart at least. Though putting one together was not difficult with the right tools.

The Detective grabbed a contraption out of his pocket. Specifically, a bomb.

Matthew began wiring it to the bottom of the car, being as silent as he could be.

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Leila Gryfflet

Stahl's voice came through the radio quietly,  _"Matthew, detonate in three. Three…two…one."_

There was the briefest of moments before the bang. Leila cocked her gun.

And the car exploded.

The mafia members either screamed or ducked for cover. The car wasn't close enough to hurt any of them, but explosions scared the shit out of people.

Both Leila and Legault brought up their handguns and began firing.

While Legault began shooting widely at the group at the table in order to keep them in confusion, Leila took careful aim…

_Bang!_

The green haired girl, Sue Sacae fell to the ground, a bullet through her neck.

_It's not about how fast you shoot. The person who takes the time to make their shot is the person who survives. Firing randomly doesn't hit anything. Being fast doesn't mean shit._

The words of the man who taught her how to shoot echoed in her mind.

Leila took a breath and aimed again…

_Bang!_

But instead of hitting the green haired man, Rath, as she had tried, she hit the Chon'sinian woman who ran by just as she fired.

"Dammit," muttered Leila, taking aim again.

Another scream resounded throughout the room. Legault had managed to hit the male Chon'sinian in the leg with a lucky shot.

The HBI agent briefly took the time to kill the wounded man.

But in that time that the hail of bullets ceased, Karel and Guy began firing back at them.

Leila and Legault both began running back the way they had come.

On the floor, Dayan and Rath ran in different directions, Rath to a car and Dayan out of the building.

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Mia Meridas

"Damn leg," she muttered as gunfire began to amount to a crescendo inside the building.

Mia was crouched behind a car, holding a shotgun.

Heather's idea, not hers.

Her girlfriend was off elsewhere, probably shooting like crazy and not hitting anything like usual.

Mia was about to curse her leg again, but that was when a black car smashed out of the side of the warehouse.

Literally.

Swearing up a storm, Mia aimed the shotgun at the car. She glimpsed Rath inside and fired.

She missed, the bullet spray hitting the back half of the car.

Mia jumped into the car that she had been hiding behind.

Looks like it was time for a car chase.

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Heather Starr

Heather was missing a lot of her shots.

But that was mainly because Guy was so blasted fast.

A bullet whizzed past her ear. Jumping in fright, Heather ducked behind the flaming car.

Matthew was around somewhere. She and he were taking care of Guy while Stahl dealt with Karel.

Heather heard a shot hit the car. She flinched involuntarily.

"Oi!" came a shout.

Heather looked, despite herself. Matthew had jumped from hiding and began unloading a clip in Guy's direction.

The Sacaen dove to the side, evading the barrage. Heather aimed her gun and fired.

_Bang!_

_Bang!_

_Click!_

Out of bullets.

Heather ducked back down as Guy returned fire.

Heather quickly began to reload as Guy began to fend off Matthew who had gone on the attack again.

The demolitions expert was forced away from the car, shooting several bullets at Guy to force the Sacaen back.

It worked briefly, Guy took cover behind the car Matthew had been at while Matthew's bullets flew harmlessly over his head.

Heather jumped out of her hiding place, gun now reloaded, and fired twice at Guy.

She missed both times, albeit barely. Guy turned on her, gun pointed at her head.

Then the car exploded.

The force of the explosion threw Heather off her feet and onto the ground, dazed.

Guy fell to the ground as well, but in pieces.

* * *

Ylissean Streets   
Mia Meridas

Mia thanked Naga many times that it was her left foot that was wounded and not the right as she drove.

Weaving in and out of cars on a bridge while keeping an eye on her target was harder than it looked. Rath was going fast enough that cars in front of him got out of the way.

Mia rode that wave and used her advantage of a clean road to catch up to Rath.

Rath stuck his arm out of the window and pointed a gun back towards her. He fired several times.

Mia wasn't expecting him to hit, so when he took off her right mirror she jumped in her seat.

_Two can play at that game,_ Mia thought as she grabbed the shotgun and held it out  _her_ window. She had one round left in it.

Taking as best of aim as she could, Mia fired.

She missed Rath, but hit his back right tire of the car.

Mia dropped the shotgun, her one arm not capable of withstanding the kick.

The black car that was her target responded to the lack of tire by wobbling harshly. Rath swerved, more than Mia had expected. Likely he was freaking out at the moment.

Continuing to swerve, Rath made a crucial error. He tried to shoot at Mia again, thus taking a hand off the wheel.

Rath's car must have hit something on the bridge's road, for it spun. Rath lost control as the car hit the bridge's railing.

The force of the car broke the railing and the car sailed off the edge.

Mia slammed on the breaks and stopped the car. Once she was at a standstill, she jumped out of the car and hobbled over to the side of the bridge.

The water was still bubbly from where the car had fallen in. Mia watched for several minutes for any sign of Rath being alive.

Nothing.

Rath Sacae was dead.

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Legault Adair

Legault had no trouble catching Dayan. The older man wasn't nearly as quick as Legault. The HBI agent kicked the Chief to the ground.

Dayan tried to get up and pull out his gun. "Fuck!" swore the Sacaen as Legault pistol-whipped him.

"Got him?" Leila said, just arriving.

Legault nodded.

"Damn it all," Dayan said. "I will not die like this!"

Legault chuckled, "You don't have much of a choice."

"I won't die with bullets left in my gun, I am Sacaen!" Dayan shouted as he whipped out his gun somehow and fired a shot.

It missed, though it tore a hole in Legault's shirt. Leila raised her gun and pointed at Dayan's head fired.

"We better find Karel and Rath and deal with them," Legault said.

Leila nodded.

They left Dayan's corpse where it lay.

* * *

749 Kutolah Avenue   
Stahl Donivore

At the moment, Stahl wished he could have trusted someone from the rest of the team to handle Karel.

Karla was right, Karel was a demon. All Stahl had been able to do was disarm him.

And receive a great deal of punches.

Stahl had chased Karel out of the warehouse where he had been trying to go after Mia, their weakest member.

Karel swept his leg into Stahl's. The Detective Inspector grunted as the weighty kick hit him. Stahl retaliated by throwing a punch at Karel's face.

Stahl's opponent ducked backward, but grabbed his wrist. Karel applied intense pressure to Stahl's wrist.

Gasping Stahl could feel his wrist get nearer and nearer to breaking. Making a desperate gambit, Stahl simultaneously wrenched his arm back towards his body and kicked Karel in the leg.

It somehow worked, freeing Stahl and irritating Karel.

Stahl didn't allow for any rest, he stepped up on the attack. He immediately feinted towards Karel's face, changing for his stomach at the last second.

It didn't work.

Karel knocked aside Stahl's fist with his arm, proceeding to land an uppercut to Stahl's stomach. Karel repeated the attack again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

Stahl fell to the ground, gasping for air and coughing painfully at the same time.

"You're tougher than most of the halfwits I kill," Karel said, as if surprised Stahl was putting up a fight.

"I…try," Stahl coughed, forgoing a witty remark for breathing.

Karel grabbed Stahl by the shirt collar and lifted him off the ground. He let go of the Detective Inspector once he was on his feet.

"I like it best when I can see the lights leave your eyes. That, is the pinnacle of my job," Karel said softly, pure enjoyment flowing through his voice.

Karel brought his fist back and threw it forward at Stahl's face, intending to end his opponent.

Stahl leaned and dodged it.

Although due to his weakened state, it was more of a stumble, which probably saved his life from a glancing blow.

Karel blinked with surprise, not knowing his victim was still capable of anything.

Stahl began to laugh, granted it was full of coughs.

Karel glared and began to renew his onslaught. He performed a traditional boxer's one-two punch, the first catching Stahl in the stomach, the second the upper chest.

Stahl doubled over, coughing renewed. Karel grinned, knowing his victim was done now.

He straightened Stahl again and began to bring his fist back.

And Stahl sprang!

He landed a solid punch in Karel's stomach. The man bent over involuntarily and Stahl brought his knee up into Karel's chest repeatedly.

Stahl stuck a leg out and swept Karel off his feet and onto the ground, smirking as he heard Karel's head hit the pavement of the ground. Hard.

"You're…not a detective…" Karel muttered, dizzy from his landing.

"No. No I'm not," Stahl said, pulling his handgun from his holster and pointing it at Karel's head. "Now, either I can kill you or you can come quietly and get back with Karla."

Karel's eyes, despite being dizzy, flashed, "The only reason I'd want to see Karla again is if were to finally kill the bitch!" Karel kicked Stahl in the leg.

The Detective Inspector fell to his knees, just in time to receive an uppercut from Karel to the chin, flinging Stahl to the ground. Karel advanced on Stahl.

The Detective bent upward and pointed his gun at Karel and fired several times, all the shots hitting the man in the stomach.

With a spray of blood, Karel fell to the ground.

Stahl lay back on the ground in order to regain his breath, which he was sorely lacking at the moment.

"Case…closed…" Stahl said, hoping the rest of the team would be successful.

He blacked out.

* * *

Ylisstol: Sacaen Mafia Mansion   
Karla Sharp

"Why are you doing this?" Lyndis asked as Karla practically dragged her to her car.

"I told you, Rath wanted you to go back to your father's until this mess blows over," Karla replied, the lie coming automatically.

"And what mess is this that you've been exceptionally vague about?" Lyndis questioned.

"I don't know. I'm following orders. Your beloved's orders," said Karla.

Lyndis fell silent, accepting her answers.

The truth was that the police was likely to be swarming this place within an hour. And Karla's conscience wouldn't let her leave Lyn there to get arrested.

The ride to Lyndis' house was very quiet. Which was unusual, given that Fir was also in the car. She usually was eager to talk to her big sister.

When they got to Lyndis' father's house, Lyn left without saying anything.

"When are we leaving?" Fir asked.

"I've got plane tickets to Plegia City, leaving in three hours," Karla said.

"Don't see why we need to leave," grumbled Fir.

"We would've died sooner or later if we stayed. But we're getting out, something that's unheard of," Karla said as she began to drive to the airport.

"Yeah, whatever," Fir said.

Karla let the issue go. Fir would get over it.

At least she wouldn't give a damn when she heard Karel was dead. Fir never liked their older brother.

Karla felt a tear fall from her eye.

Family was family, no matter what.

But Karla's was not meant to be.

* * *

YPD Precinct   
Haar Vard

"Thanks," Haar said.

"For what? You wanted revenge, and we didn't give it to you," Stahl said, puzzled.

"You knew we could get into serious shit if we were caught. So you kept us out of it, and I respect that," Haar said.

Stahl smiled, "Thanks for understanding."

Haar nodded, "Call if you ever need us." He handed Stahl a phone number.

Haar turned to leave and collect his crew, but he turned around, "One more thing. That Karel, the guy who killed Lethe. Did he suffer?"

Stahl paused for a moment.

"Yes."

* * *

Ylisstol: Stahl's Apartment   
Stahl Donivore

Stahl opened up the door to his apartment. It was dark, the dead of night.

Gregor had grilled each of them on what had happened that afternoon. And he had been very thorough.

Stahl took off his coat and put it on a coat hanger and walked into his apartment. Specifically, the kitchen.

"You did well, that was quite the arrest," said a voice in a mocking tone. "Or execution? I get them mixed up."

Stahl froze. That was a voice he had heard a few months ago, and before that, years ago. It belonged to one of the most dangerous people in the world.

Stahl grabbed a large knife from the kitchen and ran into his living room of his apartment and saw Kellam Anderson standing in a darkened corner.

"You always were the only one who could ever see me," Kellam said, stepping into the light. "Though I suppose that was your job."

"Why are you here," Stahl said coldly in a voice that didn't belong to him. And it wasn't a question.

"Maybe I just wanted to visit my old buddy? How does the YPD measure up to the HBI? I mean, you're still with the bureau, but undercover at the YPD must feel like belonging there," Kellam said.

Stahl gripped the knife tighter, "Why. Are. You. Here?"

Kellam chuckled, "Oh Stahlie-boy, there's trouble coming. This isn't the last you'll see of me. So I thought it best to check in, as how you're health was. Or maybe your girlfriend?" Kellam's lip curled into a smirk, "Oh wait, I forgot. I killed her."

Stahl furiously threw his knife at Kellam. The assassin leaned out of the way nonchalantly and the knife stuck into the wall, "Really Stahl, is that how you treat the man you hunted for five years? You know me quite well, we're practically friends. Except without the friendship part."

Stahl wished he had his gun. His fist clenched so hard his fingernails drew blood from his hand.

Kellam began to walk to the window, "But I really just came to make sure no Sacaen bastard had finished you off. I wouldn't want you to die to some peon who quit highschool and just got his hands on a gun. I'll be the one to kill you in the coming months."

Stahl couldn't take it anymore. He charged Kellam with every intent to kill him.

The assassin laughed as he jumped out the open window.

Stahl stopped short, not even bothering to look out the window. Kellam most certainly would have survived that somehow.

Stahl glanced at his coffee table. A note was left there in Kellam's writing.

_Just remember, no door is locked to me_

_-Kellam_

* * *

?   
Cordelia Shaw

Cordelia opened her eyes and was greeted by darkness.

Her mind fuzzy, she tried to recall what had landed her in this position.

Cordelia snapped to attention upon figuring it out.

"I see you're awake," said a voice.

She and Henry had been guarding the Rabbit's Foot while it was being moved.

Light suddenly blinded Cordelia. Once her eyes adjusted, she saw that she was handcuffed and strapped to a chair. And across from her was Henry, gagged and similarly trapped.

"Glad to see you're awake in time for the party!" Sterling said, clapping his hands.

Cordelia saw Henry make eye contact with her.

And for once in her life, Henry wasn't smiling.

"So, I might as well keep this brief. You two were in charge of a certain...cargo transportation. A cargo that I am very interested in. So I had Tharja bring you in. Several hours later, here you are. And it's actually possible to get out alive from here," Sterling said. "And we can all go home happy."

Cordelia glared at him.

Sterling continued, "All you have to do is tell me everything you know about the Rabbit's Foot."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Cordelia said.

Sterling's cheer fell from his face, "Don't lie to me. You know exactly where it is. And I want to know."

"I'm sorry, but I don't know," Cordelia said, beginning to sweat. Sterling's gaze was intense.

"Well then. You have a countdown from ten to tell me. Or else I shoot Henry here," Sterling said, gesturing to the man with a handgun.

"I can't tell you what I don't know-" Cordelia began.

"Nine," Sterling said.

Cordelia began to feel for her watch on her wrist, trying to get the lockpicks out of it to cut her bonds.

"Eight," Sterling said.

It wasn't there!

But Sterling had been with the YIA before he turned. He'd have recognized the watch.

"The Rabbit's Foot is Plegia City," Cordelia said. It was a lie of course, but Sterling would know of the top secret YIA facilities there. Perhaps he'd buy it…? "If you want to know where, then let him go."

"The Rabbit's Foot isn't in Plegia City. Seven."

Cordelia inwardly swore.

"I'll ask again, where is the Rabbit's Foot?" Sterling said, his voice cold.

"You're never going to get it! It's too well hidden!" shouted Cordelia. "I don't even know where it is!"

_Bang!_

Henry screamed as Sterling shot him in the leg.

" _SIX!"_ shouted Sterling angrily.  _"Do you think I'm playing!? Do you think I won't do it!? Where the hell is it!?_ Five!"

Cordelia took a deep breath and locked eyes with Henry. She hid it well, but that was the man she loved.

So Cordelia resorted to desperate measures.

"I can get it for you. We can come to an agreement! Just let him go, and I'll get it for you!" Cordelia pleaded.

Sterling was silent for a moment.

"Four."

Cordelia began trying to force her way out of her bonds, wrenching her hands each and every way to try and force her way out.

No dice.

"Put the gun down," Cordelia said. "I won't talk to you like this"

"That's your choice. Three."

"The Rabbit's Foot is in the YIA. I can get it for you-" Cordelia tried again.

"Two."

"Henry, it's okay, I'll get you out of this," Cordelia said, diverting her attention to Henry. She began to cry. So did he.

"One. This is your last chance, where is the Rabbit's Foot?" Sterling said.

Cordelia felt tears begin to fall, "Please…I want to help you. But you've got to work with me. We can work through this, like civilized people… There's no need for killing, we can sort this out."

Sterling stared at her.

"Zero."

_Bang!_

* * *

The Family Feud Job  
Case:  **Closed**


	15. The Final Bluff Job

Job #6: The Final Bluff

Port Ferox: Hutch Industries Headquarters   
Colby Arturian

Colby let the elevator open, exposing the summer sun to his skin. He walked out onto the roof, hands in his pockets.

Two men in suits waited for him. They pulled pistols on him and shouted, "Freeze!"

Colby calmly took his machine gun from within his coat and let loose a quick spray of bullets. The two men fell down. Dead.

Most people didn't even try to challenge Colby. He stood at a tall height, closer to seven feet than six. His blond hair was kept incredibly short, like a military haircut. Not only that, he wore his standard issue WIA black leather trenchcoat. He had started the protocol, reasoning that the people they went after should know exactly who they were dealing with.

And frankly, it looked cool.

"Status," Colby said gruffly.

" _We have eyes on the prize,"_ came the Hacker's voice.

"How far away from the party is he?"

" _Forty yards,"_ said the Observer.  _"In a crowded street."_

"Tail him. Wait for my signal. How are we doing on handling Pandemonium?" Colby asked, removing a pair of binoculars from his coat.

" _I have his car in sight. I'm in pursuit,"_ said the Hitter.

" _I have an opening,"_ said the Thief.  _"The prize is in sight, though surrounded by people. Do I take the shot?"_

"Take the shot," Colby said, looking in his binoculars at the building next to him. His Grifter was there, awaiting orders.

" _I repeat, I do not have a clean shot,"_ said the Thief.

"Take the shot," repeated Colby.

_Bang!_

Even across the busy city, Colby could pick out the sound of the gunshot, as faint as it was. He had good ears.

"… _Civilian hit,"_ the Thief said with a neutral tone.

"Fire again," Colby said, not caring.

_Bang!_

" _Target has been taken out, team leader,"_ the Thief said.

"Copy that. Hacker, what is the status of the information Pandemonium has acquired?" Colby asked.

" _I've blocked his computer from sending it, but I can't access it. I'm doing my best,"_ said the Hacker.

"Do better," Colby said. "Grifter, it's your move."

" _Understood,"_ said the woman. Colby watched her take a running start from one end of the building and jump off the other end.

Colby pulled a laptop out of his coat and set it on the edge of the building, "Hacker, I am sending you coordinates. Get into Pandemonium's computer and substitute these coordinates for the real ones."

" _I made it, team leader,"_ said the Grifter.

"Are you in position?" Colby asked.

" _I need two minutes."_

"You have one," Colby said, typing away on his keyboard.

" _I have the file from his body,"_ said the Thief.

"Get to Hacker with it, after it's in his hands, head off Pandemonium," Colby said.

" _Copy that."_

" _I'm in position,"_ said the Grifter.

"Plant the charges. Then get to the server room," Colby said.

" _On it."_

" _His firewalls are going up. He's onto me,"_ the Hacker said.

" _He just sped up his car,"_ the Hitter said.

"Pursue by any means necessary," Colby commanded.

" _I'm in route to Pandemonium,"_ the Thief said.  _"Hacker has the files."_

"Ignore the files, Hacker. Worry about Pandemonium. Delay him any way you can. Thief, ETA?" Colby asked.

" _Three minutes. Possibly four."_

" _The charges have been set,"_ said the Grifter.  _"Proceeding to the server room."_

" _I have eyes on Pandemonium,"_ said the Observer.  _"I have a shot."_

"Clear?"

" _No. Obstructed."_

"Take it," Colby commanded as he closed his laptop and stowed it in his coat again.

The elevator opened behind him. Three men in suits ran out and pointed guns at him.

_Bang!_

" _Target missed."_

Colby swore softly as he stared down the three men. With years of military service on his back, Colby deftly took out his pistol and gunned down the first of the three.

The other two began firing. Colby twisted to the left and shot the second man right in the temple.

The third tried to run back to the elevator, but before he made it three feet, Colby gunned him down.

" _I'm at the server room,"_ the Grifter said.  _"I'm going to need a distraction to get out though, I was compromised."_

"Plant the chip. Wait for my signal to run," Colby said walking to the elevator while reloading. He placed a square device on the button to call the elevator. Priming it, Colby stepped away.

The elevator exploded.

"Go," Colby commanded to the Grifter. "Observer, I need you to come pick me up. Hutch Laboratories no longer has any information on the Rabbit's Foot. All information has been burnt."

" _Copy that, team leader,"_ the Observer said.

" _I've been locked out,"_ the Hacker said.  _"I can't delay him anymore, the police are on him and all his traffic lights are red. Hell, his car is registered as stolen. I did the works on him."_

"Take control of the server Grifter just entered. Hutch Laboratories may have backups there," Colby said.

" _Copy that."_

" _Pandemonium is slipping ahead,"_ said the Hitter.

"Don't let him," Colby said.

The sound of a helicopter made Colby look up. The Observer landed the vehicle and Colby climbed into the passenger seat.

"Thief, what's your status?" Colby said.

" _Target is heading right toward me. I have a shot,"_ the Thief said.

"Take it," Colby commanded.

_Bang!_

"… _Target has bullet proof windows."_

"Damn," Colby said. He turned to the Observer, "Why didn't you mention that fine detail?"

"I said I missed," he said.

"You're the Observer, and part of the WIA. You don't miss."

"You do when you're piloting a helicopter while aiming a sniper rifle at a moving car," the Observer said.

" _I'm out,"_ said the Grifter.

"Head back to base. Gather things up and burn all our records," Colby said.

" _Copy that, team leader."_

" _I lost him,"_ said the Hitter.

"Shit," said Colby. "How far is he?"

" _Climbing, twenty, to thirty, to forty yards,"_ said the Thief.  _"He's hitting about seventy miles per hour."_

"Abort," Colby said. "Grifter, light the fuse."

Colby turned around in his chair and looked back.

The floor the Grifter had entered exploded.

"Report back to base. We burn and leave. Cut com links," said Colby. He took the earpiece out and switched it off.

"At least we got some of the mission accomplished," said the Observer.

"Eliwood, we didn't get shit done. We let a man get away with the location of the Rabbit's Foot. It doesn't matter if we stopped a company that had the information that was going to be sold on the black market, they couldn't have done anything serious," said Colby.

Eliwood shook his head, "Ninian Hutch could have done something. You know it. And we can still catch Pandemonium. Levin can get where he's booked an airline ticket, you know he can."

Colby nodded, and the helicopter was flown out of the city and back to their base of operations.

* * *

WIA Temporary Base of Operations   
Colby Arturian

Colby opened the door to the hotel room that served as the team's temporary base for the job. Eliwood followed him in and they joined the two already inside.

"All records of us have been burned," said Cecilia Patterson, the Grifter. "We were never here."

"Levin, do you have Pandemonium's destination yet?" Colby asked, taking off his trenchcoat. Eliwood did so as well and Cecilia and Levin already had done so.

"Actually, yes. He's flying out of a private airport to Ylisstol Central Airport. We can catch up to him there, because he's already in air," Levin Jacobson said. "I've asked Agent Robespierre and Beckett to look out for him."

"That's acceptable," murmured Colby.

The door to the hotel opened. Lon'qu, the Hitter, walked in.

"Mr. Zalman, what took you?" Colby asked. "You're late."

"The elevator was down," Lon'qu said while taking off his coat. "Of all things, the elevator was broken."

Cecilia laughed quietly as Colby just shook his head.

"Well, we did take the roof," Eliwood shrugged.

The door opened again and the sixth and final member of the team entered. The Thief, Cath, walked in and took off her coat like the other five had.

"What kept you?" Colby asked. "Elevator?"

"There was that," Cath said. "But I was checking on that civilian I shot. I wanted to know if he was dead or not."

"And?"

"Dead," she said simply.

"Unfortunate," Colby said. "And never go off like that again."

"Yes sir," she nodded.

"Now that we're all here and our footsteps covered, let's leave," Colby declared. He put his coat back on. The other five did likewise and Levin packed up his laptop.

* * *

Ylisstol: Ylissean Central Airport   
Colby Arturian

Colby looked out the window as Cecilia brought the plane down to the runway that was apart from the others. The one that people of high importance used.

All of them inside the plane could pass as pilots, even though Eliwood was their primary. And any of them could hack, grift, steal or plan just as well as the others. The WIA wouldn't take anyone who wasn't perfect, that's why there were only twenty or so WIA members in total.

Colby took a sidelong glance at Cath who was sleeping in her seat. It bothered Colby that she hadn't just walked away from that civilian death. They were WIA, they couldn't let something like that waste their time.

"Levin, get in contact with Stefan. Tell him that any information on Pandemonium's current whereabouts are to be sent to us," Colby said.

Levin nodded and began typing away on his computer, adjusting the scarf he liked to wear. Colby allowed things like that as Director, so long as they went along with his trenchcoat policy. Because dammit, that was their uniform.

The plane rolled to a stop as Cecilia pulled it into the hanger. "Nice one," Eliwood said, smiling at her.

She smiled in response.

Colby made a mental note to watch those two. He tolerated romantic relationships, but he would not let them get in the way.

Though Colby was rather cynical about romance, given his unfortunate history with romance.

"Let's go," Colby said, standing up. He watched pleased as his team jumped right up, including Cath who had been sleeping.

When they got off the plane, one of Ylisse's resident WIA agent was there to greet them. The WIA had two agents stationed in every country, and four in Valm due to its size and frequent in border violence. Said agents handled everything local and not important enough for the WIA to send a team in.

"Long time no see, sir," Renault Robespierre. "Ms. Beckett is out on the hunt however, but I'm sure she'll be back with news soon."

"How's the job going, my old friend? Is being Chief Prosecutor quite the eventful occupation?" asked Colby, with a slight grin.

"It's not all that eventful. I merely pick and choose Prosecutors for various cases and occasionally handle a case of my own from time to time," Renault said. "Now, may I have the details to what is all happening in the mission?"

"Pandemonium has obtained the location of the Rabbit's Foot. He has landed in the Ylissean Central Airport and we're here to get him, or at least remove the data from his computer," Colby said.

Renault nodded, "Any indication of who he is yet?"

"I've got a suspicion, but I want to check it first," Colby said.

"Fair enough. What's the plan?" Renault asked.

"We need to locate Pandemonium first. Do you think Beckett will find him?"

"She's very good, better than me," Renault admitted.

Colby nodded, "Let's get to our safehouse here. We'll discuss what our next move is there."

* * *

Ylisstol: WIA Safehouse   
Colby Arturian

Almost as soon as they arrived at the apartment on the thirteenth floor, Marisa Beckett contacted Renault.

And she had found Pandemonium.

He was holed up at the Crimean Hotel right in the heart of Ylisstol.

"Alright, Pandemonium's position presents a rather unique opportunity for us. We have to grab him while he knows we're coming, but he doesn't have much room to move around in," Colby said.

"So what you're saying is we go with the Arturian Maneuver?" Cath asked with a grin.

"It is a solid plan," Levin commented.

"Filled with daring and risk," Cecilia rolled her eyes.

Colby glared at the three of them. Renault glanced around in confusion and Colby came to his rescue, "The Arturian Maneuver is what my team likes to call it when we make up things as we go."

"We do that more than you think," Cath winked.

Colby shot her a look and she backed down, albeit still smiling.

The door to the safehouse opened. Marisa Beckett walked in and sat down in one of the eight chairs.

"Anything to report, agent?" Colby asked.

"Bad news. Pandemonium is better guarded than you'd think," she said softly. "He's got at least twenty people sitting outside the hotel. I didn't even try to go inside."

Colby thought for a moment before speaking, "Alright, I've got something. It's goes something like this…"

* * *

Ylisstol: Crimean Hotel Exterior   
Cecilia Patterson

Cecilia was perched on the roof next to the hotel. On top of the hotel itself was Eliwood and across the street on the roofs were Lon'qu and Marisa.

Cecilia adjusted her sniper rifle, grazing over Pandemonium's men.

" _Ten minutes to doorknock,"_ Colby said.

" _Take aim,"_ commanded Eliwood.

Cecilia assumed a perfect sniping position. From her vantage point, she saw the other three do the same.

" _Fire on my signal. Take out the ones furthest away first. Push them into a group,"_ Eliwood said.

Cecilia cocked her rifle and waited.

" _Fire,"_ came Eliwood's calm voice.

Cecilia clicked the trigger and the man in a suit she had eyes on's head exploded.

Immediately after her shot, she heard the other three's fire. Pandemonium's men began wildly looking around, pulling out guns and pinpointing where the opposing fire was coming from.

Cecilia kept up the steady stream of shots, taking out a man with every other one.

" _There's one gunning for you, Observer,"_  Lon'qu said.

" _I got him,"_ Marisa said.

Cecilia briefly scanned for any stragglers before concentrating on the group of men and women they had created.

" _Five minutes to doorknock. Phase two, engage. Observer, keep them distracted for five more minutes. Or kill them all,"_ Colby said.

* * *

Ylisstol: Crimean Hotel Interior   
Colby Arturian

Renault adjusted his bowtie, "I hate these things."

"Doesn't everyone?" Levin groaned as he parted from his scarf for the time being.

Both men were dressed as bellboys. Colby had on a classy suit while Cath had an elegant dress.

"Oh come now Levin, you're quite the handsome man in your getup," Cath winked at him.

"You think so?"

"No."

"Cath, don't be a bitch," Colby said. "Levin, grow up." Colby touched his earpiece, "Five minutes to doorknock. Phase two, engage. Observer keep them distracted for five more minutes. Or kill them all."

Renault grabbed Colby's luggage. Levin grabbed Colby's small briefcase which was actually Levin's computer. Cath stood next to Colby, posing as his wife.

"Let's go," Colby said.

They emerged from the side room they had been hiding in. No one noticed them, and if anyone had, they didn't say anything. Renault and Levin began leading the couple to the elevator.

They stepped in and Levin clicked the button for the top floor: number seven.

The elevator door closed, and the four were alone.

"Engage. Doorknock has arrived," Colby said.

Levin tapped a button on his watch and the security camera went dark in the corner of the elevator. Renault opened the suitcase and pulled out two rifles, one for him and one for Levin. They each had built in silencers.

Cath removed a gun she had strapped to her inner thigh and loaded it. Colby took a gun out from his suit jacket.

They were ready.

The elevator climbed up to the penthouse. This particular elevator's location was right next to Pandemonium's, which was the largest therefore was far away from the other rooms.

The doors opened and two of Pandemonium's men were there to greet them.

_Pft! Pft!_

Levin and Renault shot each of them noiselessly. They crumpled to the ground.

"Fan out and kill any other ones. Cath and I will take the prize," Colby murmured.

"Oh, I love prizes," muttered Cath.

Colby removed a keycard Levin had prepared. It unlocked their target's door with no trouble.

The Director took one last deep breath, and kicked open the door, holding his handgun high. Cath walked in right beside him.

"Oh dear, you seem to have caught me," chuckled a voice.

Colby glanced at the corner of the room. It was dimly lit, obscuring Pandemonium's face. He had indeed known they were coming.

"You know why we're here," Colby said.

"Indeed. But Sterling already came by and got my laptop. Looks like you're too late," the man said.

Colby didn't miss a beat, "Then I can still accomplish the secondary objective, confirming your identity."

"Well go on then, give me your best guess," the man said, a faint grin could be heard in his tone.

"You didn't die in that bombing half a year ago, did you Ivalice?" Colby said darkly.

Erk stepped into the light, "No, no I didn't."

"Sterling turned you?" Colby said.

Erk shrugged, "Yes, but a long time before the bombing of the Plegian Embassy."

"Answer me this then, why did Colm Fletcher report you helping him and his friend escape Sterling's clutches?"

"Oh, so he figured that out, did he?" Erk said, eyebrows slightly raised. "Good for him."

Colby pointed the gun directly at Erk's head, "Answer the question."

"Hmm…I guess I felt a bit guilty that Colm had gotten involved. He was one of the best of us, after all," Erk said. Then the purple haired man thought for a moment before grinning, "Not like Kellam though."

Colby glared, "What did you say?"

"Kellam was your biggest failure. You thought you had a good man in your group. Then he turned rogue. You never should have taken him into the WIA, you should have listened to Stef."

"It was Sterling's fault, not mine," growled Colby.

"What does Kellam have to do with any of this?" Cath asked with steel in her voice.

"Ms. Faraday, kindly shut up while the grownups are talking," Erk said.

"Enough talk," Colby said. "I'm taking you in. Will you come quietly?"

"I don't think you're in a position to make such demands," Erk said simply.

Colby pulled the hammer back on his gun, "Try me."

There was a sharp  _crack_ to the back of Colby's head. The Director stumbled and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Cath gun down whoever had hit him.

"Good bye, Arturian. I'll send flowers," Erk said as he opened a window.

"We've got four snipers out there," Cath said, pointing her gun at him.

"I know," Erk said before slipping out. Cath fired half a second too late, just missing him.

"Observer, target has escaped. All agents pursue," Colby said, still dizzy from when he had been hit.

"You all right?" Cath asked.

"Never better," Colby said, seeing one of Erk's men dead behind him. Colby had let the man sneak up on him. He wouldn't let that happen again.

"Will they catch him?" Cath questioned.

"No. Erk Ivalice is too good. I had hoped it wasn't him," muttered Colby. "But we better alert the YIA. We're going to need their help now."

"I'll get on it," Cath said.

* * *

The Final Bluff Job  
Mission:  **Failed**


	16. The Rabbit's Foot Job: Part I

Job #7: The Rabbit's Foot

Part I

The Hideout   
Gaius Faraday

"I don't care what you say about them, I'm telling you that they are awful at their jobs," Gaius said, sitting down.

"But they didn't seem incompetent when we dealt with them," Lissa said while leaning against the wall.

"That's because they sent their best to help us. Trust me Princess, the Valmese are very bad at intelligence," Gaius declared.

Frederick shrugged, "You have a point. At least it worked out well for us."

The Crew had just been on an assignment from Stefan where they prevented a coup in Valm. General Walhart had tried to seize power, and Gaius' crew and the Valmese agents stopped him.

"So what's next?" Morgan asked.

"We wait for Stefan to give us our next assignment," Virion said. "Until then, it's back to our normal lives."

* * *

Annamart   
Anna Cassidy

Anna looked over her shop with satisfaction. Despite having been gone for a month, the store was in neat and orderly condition.

Which was rather odd, because she hadn't arranged that.

"Gaius?" Anna asked.

"Hmm?" he poked his head from behind the door leading upstairs.

"Why is my shop in perfect condition?" she asked.

"Is that a problem, Red?" Gaius quirked an eyebrow.

"I should think that after being gone for a month and having not been here, there should be dust, or something," she said, waving a hand, gesturing to the store's stock.

"Oh. I asked Priam to keep it in Anna condition. He owed me for saving his wife Ishtar, after all," Gaius shrugged.

"And he dusted?" Anna said, slightly in disbelief. "For free?"

"He was happy to," Gaius said. "And he owed me. And that's why my candy stash was resupplied."

Morgan interrupted them by opening up the front door, a package in hand, "Mailman came by with this, Gaius."

The orange haired man took the package with some puzzlement, "I didn't order anything. You sure it's not for Red?"

"Check the label," Morgan rolled her eyes.

Gaius did so, and indeed, it was addressed to him.

Shrugging, he began to open it. Inside the cardboard package, were a pair of sunglasses. They were like the ones Gaius had his team use for operations that had cameras. The thief put them on.

Anna watched Gaius' face as it shifted to puzzlement, annoyance and finally concentration.

After about a minute or so, Gaius took the glasses off and tossed them a few feet in front of him. A snap could be heard and a puff of smoke came up from them.

"That was a message. We've got a mission," Gaius said.

* * *

Ylissean Royal Castle: Lissa's Room   
Lissa Caverly

"Go fish," Chrom said lazily.

Lissa silently swore as she picked a card that was on her bed.

"Do you have any kings?" Chrom asked.

Lissa handed over her two kings. Chrom's face morphed into a grin as he set down the four of a kind he had accumulated.

"You're obviously cheating," Lissa said, pouting slightly.

"What, secret agent Princess can't handle her older brother's Go Fish skills?" Chrom laughed.

Lissa reached over on her bed and grabbed a pillow and whacked him with it. Chrom didn't even try to block it, and instead flung himself off the bed as if she had the power of ten men.

"Hah!" Lissa exclaimed for the fun of it.

Chrom rolled his eyes.

There was a knock at Lissa's door. A servant opened the door, "Milord and Milady, her highness requests your presence."

Chrom stood up and Lissa stood up as well, albeit grumbling.

The servant took the two nobles to the meeting room that Lissa had first met Stefan half a year ago.

This time, both Emmeryn and Stefan were there. Chrom walked in first and took a seat near Emmeryn. Lissa entered next, curtsied towards Stefan (which earned her a pleased smile from Emmeryn and an eye roll from Chrom) and sat in the last available chair at the square table.

"Thank you Alan," Emmeryn said to the servant. "You may go."

"Good morning, Milord," Stefan said. "And good morning, Agent Caverly." Lissa chuckled at that, inwardly pleased. That title was her current pride and joy.

"I've been happy to note that you haven't hacked our website and hidden smiley faces around," Stefan said with a small grin.

"Or perhaps you just haven't found them yet, Mr. Director," Lissa said.

Stefan chuckled and Emmeryn laughed softly. Chrom just rolled his eyes.

Lissa stuck her tongue out at him.

"Anyway, down to business. First off, I'd like to speak with you, Chrom," Stefan said, focusing his attention on Chrom.

"It has come to my attention that you've been trying to get into the YIA for about a year now, correct?" Stefan said. "And now you abruptly stopped, why is that?"

"I promised someone I wouldn't put myself in that kind of danger," Chrom said looking down.

"It is a dangerous profession," Stefan mused thoughtfully. "And, if you'll allow me to be honest, I don't think you would have made the cut. We have plenty of Hitters and Observers. We need Grifters and Thieves right now, and both were skills you did not excel in."

Chrom deflated a bit. Even if he'd given up because of a promise, Chrom still had his dream.

"However," Stefan said, letting the word hang, "I have another opportunity for you. While you are unsuited for the YIA, you fit the conditions for the HBI. I'm willing to give Director Maribelle my personal recommendation of you for her agency. Would you be interested?"

Chrom's eyes widened. The HBI wasn't a dangerous place, not anything like the YIA at least. Lissa's brother cast a glance in her direction (which did not go unnoticed by the other two present people).

Lissa smiled widely and gave the slightest of nods. After all, the HBI handled internal affairs. Her big brother could handle that.

"I accept," Chrom said, extending his hand to shake.

Stefan nodded, and took Chrom's hand giving him a firm handshake.

"Now for Agent Caverly," Stefan refocused his attention on Lissa. "Though actually, this concerns you all. Three days ago, a known associate of Robin Sterling stole information that contains the location of an object, codenamed the Rabbit's Foot."

Emmeryn perked up, "Why didn't you tell me this three days ago, Stef?"

Stefan cringed a bit, "I wanted to, but with the WIA involved, I figured we could have this situation resolved. But something came up, and that brings me to my next point.

"The man who stole this information has been using the identity Pandemonium. Only three days ago did we finally discover who he was: Erk Ivalice."

"No way," muttered Lissa. Erk Ivalice was the best Hacker the YIA had ever had. Canas had told her all about him, and had attributed hundreds of famous hacks to him.

"Naturally, this came to a blow to us," Stefan said, anger seeping into his voice. "One of our own, one of  _my_ friends, had betrayed us."

Emmeryn set her hand on Stefan's arm. An action that did not go unnoticed by Lissa.

"In short Agent Caverly, we're sending your team along with several WIA agents to go recover this data, stop Ivalice and if possible, rescue the two agents that have been captured," Stefan said.

"What agents were captured?" Lissa asked.

"Agents Henry and Cordelia, who were involved with transportation of the Rabbit's Foot, have gone off the grid. We don't know where they are, but it is a fair assumption that Sterling got them," Stefan said grimly.

"When do we leave?" Lissa said.

"Now," Stefan said.

* * *

Ylisstol: Prosecutor's Office   
Virion Chandler

Virion stared at the case file on his desk and blinked several times.

He always had trouble adjusting back to civilian life after a long stretch of missions.

"Got something on your mind?" his partner Marisa Beckett said.

"Just…had a busy weekend," Virion said, evasively.

Inwardly sighing, Virion cursed his situation. He couldn't very well tell his girlfriend that he was a secret agent trying to save the world. Marisa was a common citizen, a prosecutor.

Yet here he was, in love with her.

"I bet it was," Marisa said, turning back to her work.

"But! Now that I am back, and I am in the presence of such beauty, then I feel like I have the strength of ten prosecutors! Let us take this case, and by my cravat, we shall win!" Virion exclaimed.

Marisa rolled her eyes and said, "Okay."

And that was a typical conversation between the two of them.

"Up you get you two," came a familiar voice.

The two prosecutors looked up to see their boss and mentor, Renault, staring down on them.

"Are we…going somewhere?" Virion asked.

"We've got a mission, Agent Chandler," Renault said.

"…Agent? What are you-"

"Be quiet. For being such a smart man, Chandler, you're quite dull," Renault said. "Beckett, you explain to him on the way."

For the first time in his life, Virion heard Marisa utter a mischievous giggle, "C'mon Chandler. Allow me to tell you about my weekend."

* * *

Ylisstol: Frederick's Apartment   
Frederick Quinn

Unlike his other members of his team, Frederick did not have some sort of hobby that he occupied his time with.

Besides cleaning his apartment.

Frederick was rarely ever home, therefore his apartment got very dusty. And that was something he didn't tolerate.

Such was the life of a full time agent.

So when Frederick got a package from the mailman, he couldn't help but mutter, "Finally!"

When he opened it and pulled out the sunglasses, he put them on without a second thought.

" _Good morning Agent Quinn,"_  said Canas' voice in Frederick's ear.  _"Three days ago, data was stolen from Hutch Laboratories in relation to the location of the Rabbit's Foot. Said object is a weapon of mass destruction developed by top secret military scientists._

" _Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to go to Ferox where it is currently housed and protect it until its location can be changed. The rest of your team has already been notified and is assembling at the YIA headquarters. …This message will self-destruct in five seconds."_

Frederick took his glasses off just as the charge exploded, destroying the message. Tossing them into the trash, Frederick grabbed his suit tie.

This was going to be a tough Job.

* * *

Ylisstol: YIA Entrance   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius pulled Anna's red car up into the plumbing store's parking lot. The three agents got out and entered the store.

Upon entering, they walked to the store counter like they were used to.

There was no one there.

Gaius, Anna and Morgan waited patiently for a couple of minutes before Gaius rapped his knuckles on the counter.

Out of the backroom came Farina, her appearance somewhat disheveled.

"You're looking…fine," Gaius said, his eyes scanning her curiously.

"Just peachy. The door's open," Farina said irately, pressing a button.

"Thanks. Tell Mark I say hey. I know he's back there, getting ready to get back to…business with you," Gaius smirked.

"Bastard," Farina muttered.

"Love you too," Gaius laughed.

The three went through the door in the far back, bypassed the usual security detail, and entered the YIA.

* * *

YIA Headquarters   
Morgan Cassidy

Morgan followed Gaius and her aunt through the secret agent headquarters. She zoned out all the way until they entered one of the regular rooms.

When they entered, Frederick was already there. Morgan wasn't surprised, and the other three took their seats.

About three minutes later, Virion walked in as he always did, with cravat and class.

Only he was accompanied by two people she didn't expect, a tall man with teal hair and a shorter woman with pink.

"Who're you?" Morgan asked to the new comers.

"Agents Robespierre and Beckett. We're with the WIA," the tall man said calmly. His voice meant business.

Morgan sized up the two newcomers. Robespierre looked very threatening with his cold calmness, whereas with Beckett Morgan couldn't get a read on. She looked like she didn't even have emotions.

"Sorry I'm late," Lissa said entering with a smile. She gave a wave to the two people she obviously didn't recognize. Robespierre nodded back and Beckett gave a small wave of her own. A very small wave.

"I suppose I can excuse it," Stefan said with the smallest of grins as he entered into the room after her.

Morgan turned her attention to Stefan, who began the usual briefing.

"As you six have noticed, we're in the presence of some new agents. Renault Robespierre and Marisa Beckett of the WIA. They, along with a couple other agents from the World Intelligence Association will be working in juncture with us."

"Who else is on board?" Gaius said. Morgan couldn't identify the emotion she heard in his voice.

"Three from my team are here," came a deep voice.

Morgan turned to see a man she hadn't seen for half a year. He was the Director of the WIA and Morgan was blanking on his name.

"Does that include you, sir?" Gaius said respectfully. That was a rare occurrence from him.

"It does not," said the man.

"Colby, no need to be so dramatic," Stefan said. "Just call in your posse."

Colby ignored him, "I will take myself and two team members for our side of the operation. Lon'qu Zalman and Levin Jacobson will be with me. I'm leaving these three with you."

Three agents filed in. As they entered, Colby left abruptly.

"Care to introduce yourselves?" Frederick asked kindly.

"I'm Eliwood Fremont," said the redhead. "A pleasure to be working alongside you all."

"Cecilia Patterson," said the first woman with a smile.

"…" the third woman said nothing. She was staring intently at Gaius. And Gaius was staring back.

"I'm Cath…Faraday," she said.

Morgan's eyes widened in surprise. Virion and Frederick had no reactions. Lissa glanced between the two without saying anything.

"Faraday?" Anna asked.

"Meet my sister," Gaius said with a neutral tone.

"Sister?" Anna asked, puzzled.

"Later," Gaius said, still not breaking his gaze with Cath.

"Sorry to break up this family reunion," Stefan said. "But we've got some bigger things to worry about."

Gaius sighed, "On with it, Green."

Stefan rolled his eyes, "There is a military facility in northern Ylisse that contains the most powerful weapon in the world. Obviously, it's a target of Sterling's. And you nine are going to protect it."

"What about the team leader?" Cath asked.

"Colby is going after Erk Ivalice. We managed to pinpoint his location, and we're going in for the kill," Stefan said.

"As for my team," Stefan continued. "One of Sterling's top operatives checked in to a hotel in Plegia City. Her name is Tharja, and that's all we know of her. Although the rumors say she's Sterling's second in command."

"So what is this, a double pronged attack?" Frederick asked.

"A triple actually," Stefan said. "Renault and Marisa are going to try and rescue agent Cordelia. Normally we'd disavow her, but she has information we need. It's a risk we need to take."

"Quite a full plan of action," Virion commented.

"We could very well cripple Sterling's organization within a week. Everyone, keep that in mind," Stefan said. "Now let's go."

* * *

The Hideout   
Gaius Faraday

"Why are you here?" Gaius asked Cath when they were alone in one of the side rooms within the Hideout.

"Damn Gaius, I'm your sister. Cut me a bit of slack," Cath said, sitting down in a chair lithely.

"My sister is dead," Gaius said sternly.

"Better get used to zombies then," Cath said.

Gaius sighed and massaged his forehead.

"Look, I know you aren't happy with me, and you have every reason to be angry," Cath began. "But we've got a job to do. And we'll need to work together."

"Fair enough," Gaius said, though he wasn't happy.

"Now I'll wait outside, looks like your girlfriend is here," Cath grinned as she left the room.

Anna walked in next, with a raised eyebrow, "Girlfriend?"

"That's Cath for you," Gaius said.

"Who exactly is she?" Anna asked.

"Cath Faraday, my sister who left to go be a WIA agent," Gaius said sourly.

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Anna commented.

"Let's just say I don't exactly approve of my little sister's career choice," Gaius said, his voice containing an annoyed undertone.

"Why though?" Anna asked, putting a finger on her chin in habit.

"The average lifespan of a WIA agent is five years at most. If Cath stays, she's bound to get killed. Or rather, killed again," chuckled Gaius. "Some sister, I can't even do a thing about it."

"Again?"

"Every WIA agent, were you to look them up, is dead. That what their records say. And that means Cath can't ever see me outside of work because it could compromise her identity."

"Why are you angry? It's not like she's actually dead," Anna said.

"We've always been close," Gaius said. "Then one day, about a year after I go with the YIA, she joins the WIA. And she vanishes. It takes me three years before I even know what happened to her. And that was the last time I saw her before today."

"Damn," Anna said. "No wonder you're angry."

"She never even admits that she was wrong," Gaius said. He stood up from his chair and said, "I'll be back later." The Mastermind left the room.

* * *

The Hideout   
Anna Cassidy

"I deserve his anger," Cath said from a shadowed corner.

Anna jumped in surprise and turned to see Cath in the corner. The door Gaius left through slammed shut.

"How…?" Anna asked, still rattled by Cath's sudden appearance.

"I'm a professional, pay attention. WIA Thieves have their ways," Cath said. "But more importantly, you two should hook up."

"What?" Anna said, trying to regain her composure.

"I know my brother better than he knows himself. He may hate me at the moment, but I'm concerned for him. And I can tell he likes you," Cath said.

"Why do you care about him? From the sound of it, you left him," Anna said.

"I…had my reasons," Cath said. She turned to leave, "Make sure to think about what I said. And while he may not be able to look out for me, I can certainly look out for him."


	17. The Rabbit's Foot Job: Part II

The Rabbit's Foot Job

Part II

Northern Ylisse: Military Facility   
Gaius Faraday

"This is it?" Gaius commented, looking at the abandoned building in the middle of the forest. It was a four story building that had a fence around it. Whether it worked or not was up in the air.

"I'd assume it merely looks that way so that Sterling doesn't come snooping," Eliwood said thoughtfully.

"Let's get going then. See what we're going to be guarding," Cath shrugged.

Gaius, Eliwood, Cath, Cecilia, and the rest of Gaius' Crew filed into the building. Even on the inside, it looked entirely abandoned. No sign of life, and just remnants of equipment that had once been used for building and designing military weapons.

"This place looks familiar," Gaius muttered to himself.

"That's because it is. Don't you recognize it? We were here during the final nights of the war," Virion said, talking quietly so none overheard.

"No…really?" Gaius said, amazed as he popped a piece of candy in his mouth. "It certainly looks different."

"That's because people actually worked here then," Virion rolled his eyes.

"Ruffles, do you ever think about it? The war, the missions we did?" Gaius asked quietly, more so than before.

Virion was silent for a moment, "I try not to. After what happened to Stef's wife Anna…well, that was awful."

"At least from what Princess tells me, he's getting pretty serious with the Queen," Gaius said with a small chuckle.

"He deserves it, but I assume that you weren't talking about Anna," Virion said as the group proceeded even deeper into the facility.

"No, no I wasn't," Gaius said.

"What we did then was what we had to do. Me, you, Arturian, Erk, Anna and Stef all knew what we were getting into," Virion said darkly.

Gaius nodded, they had done some bad things to end the war. But what choice had they had?

"Listen, I've been meaning to talk to you about Sterling," Virion began. "I think I know why he turned."

"Really?"

"Woah!" Morgan said as they approached the next room, sequestered in the back of the facility.

"I'd go out on a limb and assume that's the Rabbit's Foot," Frederick said.

"We'll talk about this later," Gaius said to Virion, moving close to the item of interest.

The Rabbit's Foot was in a glass case. Not only was it in a case, but the actual thing itself was encased in a smaller glass cylinder. Inside  _that_ was a device Gaius recognized as a bomb.

"What  _is_ this thing?" Morgan asked as she and the others all looked through the glass case.

"The Rabbit's Foot is the most dangerous weapon in the world. It was developed during the war seven years ago by Plegian scientists. We stole it from them," Gaius said, some smugness creeping into his voice.

"But what does it do?" Morgan asked.

"It can blow up an entire continent," Virion said simply. "Which is why it is so important to keep it out of a terrorist's hands, such as Sterling's."

"An…entire continent?" Lissa gasped.

"And that's why we're here to protect it. And why we'll be sitting here until further notice," Cath said. "Right, team leader?"

Gaius shot her a look, "…Right."

* * *

Northern Ferox   
Colby Arturian

"He really went off the grid this time," Levin muttered.

"Erk Ivalice is the best damn hacker out there. It isn't hard for him to do," Colby said.

The three of them were in a small town in northern Ferox. Thankfully, it was not the snowy season, and the area was free of snow, albeit cold.

"But why here?" Lon'qu said. "What's here for him?"

"I'd assume we'll find out when we find him," Colby grunted. "C'mon."

The three walked the streets, and Levin had his computer out, searching for any signs of Erk.

"Levin, status report," Colby said.

"When I found him before we left, I had only been able to pin his location down to this town. I couldn't get any specifics. And I still can't," said the Hacker. "Like you said, he's good."

"Unacceptable," Colby said. "But we'll have to try the old fashioned way. Levin, find somewhere to hole up and keep trying. Lon'qu, we're going to go ask around town for recent arrivals."

Levin left the group and the other two continued on.

"You try the town hall, I'll try that tavern over there," Colby said.

"Tavern? Bit old fashioned for you, sir," Lon'qu observed.

"I'm an old fashioned guy," Colby grunted. "Now get going."

"Right away, sir."

Colby made his way through the wind to the bar. Thankfully his trenchcoat kept him warm. How he hated the cold.

The Mastermind pushed open the door to the bar and walked in. Inside, there was the typical cheer of a bar on a cold day. Colby sat at the barstool and a bartender addressed him.

"The name's Largo, what'll it be?" said the cheerful man. He was giant enough to rival Colby's size, but not enough.

"Information," Colby said, leaning forward. Largo raised an eyebrow and gestured for Colby to continue.

"I'm looking for a man who should have recently arrived at this town. He's average height, purple hair, looks like he should belong in a library, sound familiar?" Colby said.

"We haven't had any new single arrivals. But in the inn a few blocks up the road, a couple came through and rented a room. Didn't get a look at them tho'," Largo said. Then his eyes narrowed, "But who wants to know?"

"An interested party," Colby said smoothly, setting a twenty gold note on the table. The giant of a man left his bar stool as Largo took the money.

Colby pulled out his com link and said, "Erk's at the inn with some woman. Meet me there."

" _Roger that,"_ came two voices.

* * *

Plegia City: Lobby of the Bern Hotel   
Stefan Gerrard

"So many fond memories here," Mark said. "Like running from assassins in a limo."

"I'm pretty sure all you're thinking about is how Emmeryn looked after you brought that change of clothes to her," Stefan muttered.

Kris heard him and muttered back, "I'm pretty sure that's all  _you're_ thinking about."

Stefan just shook his head in exasperation and looked out over the mass of people walking about inside the Bern Hotel. It was Plegia City's biggest hotel and could house more than a thousand people. Plus it connected with a casino.

"Any luck?" Stefan asked his Hacker.

Sigurd shook his head, "I can't do much without a picture. I'm trying to get her room number, but this hotel doesn't have any electronic records of that."

"How's that possible?" Farina asked.

"Some hotels prefer to do things the old fashioned way. They consider it an honor of some sort," Stefan shrugged. "But anything on Tharja at all?"

"She used to work for the Plegian Science Division," Sigurd said off handedly.

"Not very helpful," commented Stefan.

"Give me ten more minutes. I bet I can get a photograph of her," Sigurd said, staring at his computer screen intently.

"Don't take too long," Stefan said. "We need to grab her before she sees us."

* * *

Ylisstol: Inner City   
Marisa Beckett

"And your friend said he'd meet us here?" Renault clarified.

"He said he'd meet  _me_  here. You'll have to clear out, old man," Marisa said.

The two stood in front of a café in the shady part of town. Renault nodded at Marisa's response and got back in the car. Opening the window, he said, "Call if you need backup, I'm just down the street."

Marisa gave a slight nod and walked into the café and picked a table to sit at.

Ten minutes later a man sat down across from her.

"Lloyd Reed, long time no see," Marisa said.

"What brings you back here, Marisa?" Lloyd asked curiously.

"I'm in need of a little help. I figured my friend, that's you, in the Black Fang could help me out?" Marisa asked.

"Depends what you want to know," Lloyd said calmly.

"I need to find these two. Have you seen them?" Marisa slid two pictures toward Lloyd. "The man is presumed dead, but the woman is still alive as far as we know."

"Who's we?" Lloyd commented while looking at the pictures.

"My backers," Marisa said. Lloyd didn't know she was an agent. Or else he'd never help her.

"I don't recognize the man. But the woman rings a bell," Lloyd said as he scratched his stubble. "I think I saw her a few days back. I don't really remember the guy she was with, but it was definitely not far from here."

"Do you know where they were going?" Marisa pressed.

Lloyd pulled out a pen and wrote an address on a napkin. "It's an apartment complex. I don't know where inside, but they're in there."

Marisa grabbed the napkin, "Thanks Lloyd, I owe you."

Lloyd chuckled, "No you don't. Now run along and save the damsel in distress."

Marisa rolled her eyes and left.

* * *

Northern Ferox   
Colby Arturian

Colby and his two men stood outside the inn and were sizing it up from across the street.

"We may as well go in," Levin said. "It's not like we're in some big city. He doesn't have anywhere to run."

"That's the kind of thinking that gets you killed," Lon'qu said.

"We're going in," Colby said, ignoring them both. He began walking to the front doors, both of his agents following him.

Upon entering, Colby walked right up to the front desk and said, "Excuse me, Ferox Police Department. We're here to investigate some fugitives that recently checked in."

The woman at the desk gasped, "They're in room three."

_That was easy,_ Colby thought. "Key please?"

The woman handed him a key.

Even easier.

Security these days.

Colby began walking toward the room, following the hotel's signs. In less than a minute, they were there.

Lithely, Colby inserted the key and unlocked the door. The door slowly opened…

"Moving wouldn't be a good idea," Erk said, pointing a gun at the woman that was with him. He had her pressed up against his body, the barrel of the pistol at her skull.

* * *

Plegia City: Bern Hotel   
Stefan Gerrard

"Got it," Sigurd said. "Running facial recognition now."

Stefan peeked over Sigurd's back to glimpse this Tharja.

And he couldn't shake the feeling that he had seen her somewhere.

"Something on your mind, boss?" Farina asked.

"She looks rather familiar," Stefan said, stretching his mind to try and think of somewhere he had seen her.

"Found her. First floor, room 113," Sigurd declared. "She's in her room."

"Let's move," Stefan said.

The five quickly maneuvered their way through the massive crowd to get to Tharja's room. In less than five minutes, they were there.

"Talk about a fire hazard. If there was a fire, half of those people would be trampled," Kris said irately.

Stefan ignored him and took a keycard out of his suit jacket. He slid it halfway into the card slot on the door and waited. After a couple seconds, the door beeped and was unlocked.

Stefan stowed is keycard and walked into the room, gun out.

The Director, Kris and Mark walked in slowly, pistol, shotgun and handguns respectively at the ready.

No Tharja in the small room.

Stefan ran a hand through his long hair and waved a hand at his team for them to fan out in the room to search it.

The closet door burst open! Sigurd's face met a pistol and he fell to the ground, dazed. Tharja leapt out of the closet and pointed the gun at Stefan and fired.

Stefan felt the bullet graze his side and the Director returned the fire, missing. But the shot caused Tharja to bolt out the door.

"Kris! Mark! After her!" Stefan shouted. The two instantly obeyed.

Sigurd began to stand up. Stefan made to walk over to him and check on him, but Sigurd just waved him off.

"Farina, we're going to take her out from the roof top. Let's go!" Stefan shouted.

* * *

Ylisstol: 504 Verdane Road   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa stepped out of the car as Renault pulled up. The shady apartments were right next to them.

"Check the empty apartments first," Renault said. "You take the even ones, I'll take odd."

"Got it," Marisa said. She checked the list of names by the callbuzzer, her first empty was on the third floor.

Renault pulled out his silenced gun and shot the lock on the door. The agent proceeded to kick the door open.

Marisa headed up the stairs while Renault checked the first floor's empty apartment.

When she got to the third floor, she picked the lock of the empty apartment and eased the door open.

The pink haired woman pulled out a gun and walked in slowly.

At first, there was nothing. Just some crappy furniture in the surprisingly roomy apartment.

Then Marisa checked out the bathroom. And she screamed.

There was Cordelia, tied to a chair and gagged.

And very dead.

There were cuts all over her body. Blood was in her hair, on the floor and covered most of skin. Despite her reaction, Marisa walked closer and examined the body at closer detail.

Bruises were scattered about. Her arm had been broken in two—no, three places.

She had been tortured.

Marisa walked out of the bathroom, still staring at the corpse of the agent.

"Well this is a surprise. I fully expected you people to disavow her," said a voice.

Marisa turned wildly trying to locate the man the voice belonged to.

"Perhaps you've heard of me, I am Kellam Anderson," said the man. He wore a black suit, but what was notable was that he wore an apron over it.

An apron covered in blood.

"You…!" Marisa exclaimed. She raised her fists, but as she was doing said action, Kellam landed a punch square in her temple.

The agent fell backward and hit the floor with a hard crash.

Kellam reached into his suit jacket and pulled out both a bloody knife and a strange device.

"She was brave," Kellam said, as if commenting on the weather while casting a glance at the bathroom. "But she gave in towards the end. And she was a screamer, always yelling to make it stop. Though I must admire how long she held out before calling for her mother. You should have heard her, 'Mommy! Mommy!' Stupid woman, she didn't even put up a fight once I broke her."

The door crashed open and Renault jumped in. He glanced at Marisa, Kellam, and Kellam's bloody apron and put two and two together.

"You," snarled Renault, displaying the first sign of raw emotion Marisa had ever seen from him.

"Me. You're too late, I killed her," Kellam shrugged. He pointed the knife at Renault, "So the question is, do I cut up you first," his knife moved to Marisa, "or her?"

Renault sprang into action before Marisa could blink. He had a lot more luck than Marisa too, for he knocked Kellam's first punch out of the way and scored a hit on Kellam's jaw.

The assassin's gaze steeled and a deadly calm descended over him. Renault began a flurry of punches, and all of which were blocked by Kellam. With Renault's last punch, Kellam blocked it so well Renault teetered backward and Kellam used the opening.

Renault's chest was hit by a haymaker from Kellam. The agent was thrown off his feet with sheer power.

Marisa tried to stand up, still somewhat dazed. But Kellam saw this, and threw the knife at her with deadly accuracy. The knife embedded itself in her shoulder. The woman screamed and clutched her shoulder in pain.

Kellam ignored her and advanced on Renault. He brought the strange device up to Renault's nose and there was a sound that reminded Marisa of an electric shock.

Renault abruptly ceased fighting and lay limp.

"A microrelease charge inserted through the nasal cavity. In less than fifteen minutes, your friend will be dead," Kellam said with a chuckle. "And since I'm just so generous, I'll give you the chance to save him. But the police will be here in ten minutes, and they'll find you with two bodies."

The assassin laughed and walked to the door, "A pleasure making your acquaintance. One last thing…" Kellam walked over to Marisa and grabbed the knife and  _ripped_ it out of her shoulder. "Mine," he said, winking. And Kellam left.

Marisa could barely see anything out of her eyes. Kellam's knife had struck a central nerve in her shoulder. He had planned that, Marisa could see it. Her right arm was useless because of it. She could neither escape, nor save Renault. It wasn't like she knew how to stop a microrelease charge without a defibrillator.

But she'd be damned if she didn't try. And she began crawling to his body.

* * *

Northern Ylisse: Military Facility   
Gaius Faraday

"We should work this out," Cath said.

"What's there to work out?" Gaius said, annoyed. "You let me think you were dead for three years."

"I had no choice," Cath said. "I had one chance to get into the WIA, and I took it."

"Congrats, do you want a balloon?" Gaius asked sarcastically.

"What would you say if I did it to protect you?" Cath asked.

"What was there to protect me from?" Gaius said, slightly interested.

"Me," Cath said.

"What?"

"With me gone, you were free to go with the YIA as you wished without having to worry about attachments, specifically me."

"…"

"I know what you did as an agent there. You stopped the war, and I didn't want to hold you back like I had done all my life," Cath said.

"…Do you know what happened to me in those three years?" Gaius said with a monotone voice.

Gaius continued without waiting for a response from her, "I took every mission and accomplished it at any cost. Want me to tell you the story of the Feroxi Embassy? Once upon a time Gaius Faraday is tasked with killing everyone in a meeting. But instead of merely bombing the room, I blew up the entire building. And you want to know why? Because one your death report, you had been 'killed' by a Feroxi gang in Ylisstol."

Cath was silent.

"I killed over five hundred people with the push of a button. And you say you did this for me?" Gaius said, his voice raising.

"I never wanted this," Cath said, a few tears in her eyes.

"Cry me a fucking river, neither did I," Gaius said.

"After this, I'm going to quit the WIA," Cath said between tears.

"And what would that help?"

"It would help because you're my brother dammit! I love Gaius, you're my only family left and I need you! I know this is all my fault, but let me try and fix it!" Cath cried.

Gaius felt his heart take over his body as he walked over to Cath and hugged her.

He felt the girl tense and slowly wrap her arms around her brother.

"I don't forgive you," Gaius said. "But you're my sister, and I'm not going to abandon you."

"Thank you…" she whispered as she cried into his shoulder.

* * *

Northern Ylisse: Military Facility   
Gaius Faraday   
_One Hour Later…_

"What was it you were going to tell me?" Gaius asked.

Virion cleared his throat, "Do you remember the month leading up to Sterling's betrayal?"

"Was that the Plegian sabotage job at the weapons plant?" Gaius clarified.

Virion nodded, "Remember who we used as a distraction?"

Gaius thought hard, "Some woman. I can't remember her name."

Virion nodded, "She did die after all. And she was just a civilian."

"Your point?"

"She wasn't just a civilian. Do you remember how she died?" Virion prompted.

"Stefan had to shoot her because she was going to get us captured. She thought we were terrorists and trying to destroy her own country," Virion said.

"Well, we were trying to hurt Plegia," Gaius said.

"But she thought we were going to detonate a nuclear bomb. Anyway, more importantly, are you sure you can't remember her name?"

"Something with an R?" Gaius shrugged.

"Her name was Robin," Virion said darkly.

Gaius looked puzzled, "So? It's a common name."

"Sterling was with us on some of our jobs. He wasn't there that job though," Virion said.

"I'm not following, care to spell it out?" Gaius said, scratching his head.

"That Robin's last name was Sterling. She was our Robin Sterling's sister. That's why Sterling hates Stefan. And that's why he betrayed us," Virion said.

"Damn, you sure?" Gaius asked.

Virion nodded, but just as he was about to speak, Morgan ran in.

"We got company. Sterling's here."


	18. The Rabbit's Foot Job: Part III: Finale

The Rabbit's Foot Job

Part III: Finale

Northern Ferox   
Colby Arturian

"I will shoot her," Erk warned.

"I believe you," Colby said, not moving his gun from Erk's head.

"In that case, put the gun down. I'll shoot her if you don't," Erk said.

"You assume I care?" Colby quirked an eyebrow. However, Lon'qu and Levin lowered their guns.

"…" Erk was silent.

"Besides, you won't shoot her. If you did, you'd lose your leverage. Not to mention your shield would be useless," Colby smirked.

"How did you find me?" Erk asked.

Levin spoke up, "You connected to someone's wifi. I merely traced it back here."

"Damn," Erk swore.

"Who's the dame?" Colby asked.

"Her name's Priscilla. I…met her a few days ago," Erk said.

"Unfortunate for her," Lon'qu muttered.

"Help…me…" begged Priscilla.

"Don't worry sweetheart," Colby smirked. "Ivalice here sucks at everything that doesn't use a computer."

"Do I?" Erk said with a smile. "Why Arturian, I'm offended!"

"Have you ever given me a reason to doubt that statement?" Colby frowned.

"How about right now?" Erk said, glee in his voice.

In a fraction of a second, Colby fired his gun. But he was too slow, Erk dove out of the way just in time as a flash grenade exploded.

Light blinded the three agents' eyes. Colby blinked furiously, trying to dispel the light and clear his vision. He felt someone who must have been Erk brush up against him.

"He's leaving the room!" shouted Colby.

* * *

Bern Hotel: Roof   
Stefan Gerrard

"Get me your rifle!" shouted Stefan as ran to the edge of the roof. Farina dropped her bag and began assembling the sniper rifle with cold precision.

Mark and Kris were both on their way to capture Tharja. Thankfully, the crowds of the hotel would aid them. But they'd also hinder them. Tharja wouldn't be able to move as fast, but neither would Mark and Kris.

But that would buy time for Stefan and Farina to get ready.

"I'm ready," Farina said, bracing the sniper against her shoulder.

"Oh no," Stefan said. "I'm taking the shot."

"What!?"

"Didn't you know? Before I was Director and Mastermind, I was an Observer. Give it here," Stefan ordered.

Farina reluctantly handed over her baby, and Stefan took a standing position and shoved the stock against his shoulder.

Breathe…

Tharja burst from the Bern Hotel in a mad run. Surprisingly, Mark and Kris were right on her tail.

Bad for sniping.

Stefan growled as he brought his eye up to the sight. He followed Tharja along her sprint along the street, moving away from the hotel.

Stefan concentrated on Tharja's leg. She was running, so half of the time it wasn't even touching the ground.

An impossible target.

But a necessary.

A voice echoed in his head,  _"I don't give a damn if it's impossible! I said get it done, so do it!"_

Stefan took a deep breath and fired.

The bullet hit the ground just as Tharja's foot fell.

A miss.

"Shit!" Stefan shouted.

Tharja was getting away from Mark and Kris, who had fallen behind due to crowds.

Then a traffic light exploded.

" _Take the shot!"_ Sigurd yelled.

Stefan brought the sight back up and fired.

Tharja fell to the ground, a bullet through her ankle.

* * *

Ylisstol: 504 Verdane Road   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa stood up shakily, holding her left hand over the hole in her shoulder to stop the bleeding.

She stumbled over to Renault, "Renault!"

No response.

"Renault!" her voice yelled, shaky with pain.

The older man stirred, "…What…did he do to me?"

"A microrelease charge. You'll be dead in ten minutes unless we fry it. And there aren't any defibrillators," Marisa said.

"Crap," Renault muttered. He began to stand up, albeit slowly. "Go grab a basin and fill it with water.

Marisa ran to the kitchen and grabbed a dusty and dirty basin from under the sink. She quickly filled it up with water.

The agent ran back to the main room. Renault was taking apart a light switch.

"I'm going to put some of these wires in the basin, and you're going to flip the switch while my hand is in there. It'll shock me, but that'll fry the charge. You'll have to restart my heart with CPR after that. Can you do that?"

"I…I don't—"

"I said, can you do that!?" shouted Renault.

"Yes, sir!"

Renault pulled three of the wires and dipped them into the water. He held the basin in one hand and his hand in the water with another, "Remember, flip it on and off. Instantly, any longer or I'll be fried."

Marisa nodded and watched Renault grab a pen out of his pocket and put it between his teeth. "Ready," he said through clenched teeth.

Marisa took a breath and flipped the switch.

Renault jolted and dropped the basin. He clenched his teeth so hard that the pen broke in half.

Marisa flipped the switch back an instant later.

The pink haired woman dashed to Renault's side and flipped him on his back. She folded her hands and pressed down against his chest, right above his heart.

_One._

_Two._

_Three._

_Four._

_Five._

_Breathe._

On the last, Marisa bent down and put her lips over Renault's and breathed.

Marisa repeated the process, oblivious to the crash of a door being knocked down behind her.

"Police! Freeze!" shouted a man.

Marisa didn't notice them as she kept trying to revive Renault.

That is, until a hand pulled her back from Renault's body.

"No!" she screamed through tears.

One of the policemen sat down next to Renault and checked his pulse, "He's gone."

"There's another body all cut up in the bathroom!" shouted one of the policewomen.

"Looks like we've got our suspect," said the man who had grabbed Marisa.

Marisa tried to fight him off, but with only one good arm, she couldn't. Before she knew it, handcuffs were forced onto her, and then there was truly nothing she could do.

Renault was lost.

* * *

Northern Ylisse: Military Facility   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius looked out one of the windows in the front. Sure enough, Sterling had pulled up in a car. Five of his goons got out of another car as well.

"We can take 'em," Virion whispered.

"They might have an ace up their sleeve though," Morgan said.

"Sterling will have something planned, I know him," Gaius said. The orange haired thief turned around to face the rest of the group. "Anna, Morgan and I will meet Sterling head on. Lissa, try and hack into Sterling's car and kill it. Don't let him leave. Frederick, take Virion and sneak around the back and approach Sterling from the back. And as for Eliwood, Cecilia and Cath, you're in charge of taking out those five henchmen of his. Move out!"

The team went their separate ways. Gaius, Anna and Morgan descended down the nearby stairs to the main floor.

"How're you and Cath doing?" Anna asked.

"What? You ask that when we're walking down to take on the most dangerous man in the world?" Gaius said, quite perplexed.

Anna merely looked at him expectantly.

"We…uh…reached an understanding," Gaius said. "But we have more important things to worry about."

The three took a position on either side of the doorway into the facility. Gaius and Anna on one side, Morgan on the other.

Gaius pulled out his gun, and then noticed Morgan had a gun. "Where did you steal that from?" Gaius asked.

"We're in a military facility Gaius, where the hell do you think?" Morgan rolled her eyes.

"She got you," Anna giggled. "Turn here."

Gaius turned towards Anna and was met with the crash of Anna's lips on his.

"For luck," she winked.

Gaius wanted to say something witty, but Sterling's goons must've noticed them and began to fire.

Shit happens.

* * *

Military Facility: Upstairs   
Lissa Caverly

The only light in the room was Lissa's laptop, and even that was as dim as it could go.

She couldn't hear anything yet, but Lissa knew gunshots were coming.

So, to pass the time, she hacked Sterling's car. As Lissa suspected, it was one of the new computerized cars.

Piece of cake.

Lissa merely changed the engine settings in a way that would cause it to explode when the key was turned.

She did the same for the other car, and then closed her laptop.

Grabbing her gun, she went to go help Gaius. Thankfully, Frederick had finally trusted her with a gun after Valm. Walking around without a gun in the secret agent life was like walking around naked in a blizzard.

* * *

Military Facility: Rooftop   
Cath Faraday

Cath aimed her rifle at the leader of the five goons. She was a woman, standing taller than the other men and supporting a rather large gun.

Cath aimed and took a deep breath…

And Eliwood shot her.

"Come now Cath, keep up!" grinned the redhead.

"Now dear, don't show off," Cecilia chuckled.

"How can I not when there's a beautiful girl near me?" Eliwood laughed.

"Stop it, or I'll blush," Cecilia said.

"You? I was talking about Cath!" Eliwood said, shooting another goon.

"Bastard!" said Cecilia and she kicked him. "You hang around Hector too much."

"You know you love me," Eliwood said.

"Less talking, more shooting," Cath said. She fired, and missed her target.

When she had evaluated for a position in the WIA, the Observer area was her weakest. She just couldn't land hits consistently.

Eliwood refocused and shot another man without even trying. Cecilia missed her shot and Eliwood picked up the slack. Then he hit the last one.

"Damn it Eliwood! Why do you have to be so good at everything!?" Cath said playfully.

"We'll figure that out later. Let's go back up those guys downstairs."

* * *

Military Facility: Road   
Frederick Quinn

"Can you hit him from here?" Frederick asked from within the trees.

Virion shook his head, "Not only is Sterling going to be wearing a bullet proof vest, but it's too far away. I don't want to give away our position."

"Dammit," said Frederick. "This is why I don't like guns."

* * *

Military Facility: Main Entrance   
Morgan Cassidy

Morgan peeked out at the lapse in gunfire and saw the five goons laying on the ground, dead.

She also saw Sterling pointing his cane at her. Instincts taking over, she ducked back as a gunshot rang out.

"A guncane!" Morgan exclaimed.

"Sterling, you're an ass!" shouted Gaius as he reloaded.

"I put the ass in classy, Faraday!" shouted Sterling back at Gaius.

Morgan saw Sterling was hiding behind a tree inside the fence that bordered the Facility.

"We can rush him," whispered Morgan. Gaius nodded and motioned with two fingers to follow him.

They slowly approached the tree. Gaius went around the right side. And Sterling dashed from the left and grabbed Morgan.

The Thief felt Sterling's cane at her throat.

"I have two canes, Faraday. Both function as guns, but one has the capability to discharge twenty thousand volts in less than a second. Do you want to find out which cane I have today?" Sterling said gleefully. Morgan could feel his breath on her neck.

"Now if you'll excuse me and my associate, we'll be leaving," Sterling said.

"What associate?" Gaius asked through clenched teeth.

Morgan saw out of the corner of her eye a man crash through the third floor window. He was clothed in black and hit the ground with a dive roll.

Morgan recognized the man. That was Astol, one of the most famous jewel thieves in the world. Also surprisingly fit for an old man of about fifty.

"I have it," said Astol in a low voice. Morgan managed to glimpse a glass cylinder in his hand.

The Rabbit's Foot.

"Meet my Thief," Sterling grinned.

_Fwip._

_Fwip._

_Fwip._

Morgan jerked her head toward the sound. A helicopter was descending on the property.

"And that's our ride. Ladies and Gentlemen, if you'll excuse me," Sterling said as he got on the helicopter as it landed. Astol followed him.

The helicopter began to lift off. Morgan felt Sterling's arm relax somewhat. He seemed to think he had her and was safe.

Morgan jerked her foot back and smashed Sterling in the leg. The man swore and let go of Morgan.

The red haired woman began to fall out of the helicopter. She whipped out the pistol and fired it several times toward Sterling.

Astol grabbed Sterling and shoved him back out of the way. The helicopter's speed picked up and ascended rapidly.

Morgan hit the ground. She hadn't been very high up, but it still hurt some.

Morgan watched the helicopter get smaller and smaller.

They failed. And the most dangerous weapon in existence now was in the most dangerous man's hands.

* * *

Plegia City: Outside the Bern Hotel   
Stefan Gerrard

While Kris and Mark were gone securing them a ride, Farina and Stefan stood watch over Tharja.

Stefan studied her face carefully. And it was at that moment he realized where he knew her from.

"You're a scientist right? At the lab that designed the Rabbit's Foot, right?" Stefan asked.

Tharja nodded, "I guess I was, once upon a time."

"Couldn't get enough data to make another Rabbit's Foot by yourself, could you?" Stefan arched an eyebrow triumphantly.

Tharja looked down, seemingly embarrassed, "…No."

"Farina, get mark on the phone. Tell him to hurry, this prisoner just got all the more valuable," Stefan chuckled. Sterling needed this woman if he were to detonate the Rabbit's Foot correctly.

Stefan had put Sterling in Check. Now it was time to see what his next move would be.

* * *

YPD Precinct: Holding Cell   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa bolted upright in her chair, now awake. Her hand didn't move to her jacket for her gun like she'd wanted it to, for it was handcuffed to the table.

"Good timing, waking up now. Just in time for dinner," a detective said from the other side of the table. Marisa quickly recognized that she was in the Ylissean Police Department itself from the room's dimly lit area. Plus there was that one way window to worry about.

"I'm Detective Inspector Donivore," said the detective. "What's your name?"

"Where's Renault?" Marisa immediately asked.

"You mean the big man with the teal hair? He's dead," Donivore said.

Marisa sank back in her chair, tears threatening to break free.

"Funny about him, we checked his records. Apparently, he died seven years ago. Wanna explain how a dead man ended up dead?" Donivore said quizzically.

Marisa ignored the man. She still had her watch on.

An escape plan began forming in her mind…

"And this other woman, a Cordelia Shaw. Who was she and why did you kill her?" Donivore leaned forward.

Marisa's watch slid right down to her hand, but Donivore didn't notice. He was focused on her face, looking for any indication of emotion.

So Marisa kept a cold calmness on her face, not letting a breath of emotion through.

Her nimble fingers slid along the cold metal of the watch until she found the lockpick that was a small indent on the watch.

She pressed it and the lockpick popped out into her hand. Silently and never moving her face, she began to pick the lock with the fastest speed she'd ever managed.

Donivore's expression turned to anger, "Do you have nothing to say for yourself?"

"Fuck. You," Marisa growled. She jumped up from the chair and her handcuffed hand came out unhindered.

Donivore's eyes widened and Marisa took advantage and jumped over the table. In an instant, her arm was wrapped around Donivore's neck.

The door to the holding room burst open with detectives just as Marisa removed Donivore's gun from its holster. She pointed the barrel at the detective's head.

"No one moves," she said coldly.

The detectives that had burst in paused and lowered their weapons.

"I want you all to move far away from this door," Marisa commanded, gesturing at them with the gun.

The policemen and women complied and backed away. Marisa walked forward with Donivore and began to walk towards the front doors of the Precinct.

All along the way she kept her eyes on every single detective she passed. All of them looked ready to act, but unwilling to put one of their own in the way of harm.

Marisa got to the doorway and pushed it open, still holding Donivore.

"I'm going to let you go," Marisa muttered in the man's ear. "And if you even twitch for running, I will kill you like you let my friend die."

The detective nodded slowly. Marisa brought her arm down, but kept the gun trained on the man's back.

Marisa walked back into the street. Cars honked and swerved out of her way, but she didn't care. Said cars would provide her with her escape.

Once two cars had swerved out of the way of hitting her and were now between her and the precinct, she ran.

Hiding in the city was no trouble, she knew it like the back of her hand.

But this would be the first time the man who was like a father to her wouldn't be there.

* * *

Northern Ferox   
Colby Arturian

Colby barreled through the door that Erk had ran out of. Smoke still hindered Colby's vision somewhat, but it didn't stop him from running after his prey.

Lon'qu and Levin followed Colby, more hindered by the smoke than the Director was.

Colby ran past the very complacent woman at the front desk and out the main door.

A woman screamed as he ran outside. Colby's eyes homed in on the woman Priscilla, covering her face.

But if Priscilla was here, where was Erk?

"Damn!" Colby shouted as he realized Priscilla had been the one to run past him.

The roar of a car engine echoed across the town as a black car came speeding down from the hotel's parking lot past Colby.

Erk opened the window and pointed a submachine gun at Colby and fired.

The Director hit the ground and avoided the shots. He pulled out his pistol and fired at Erk's car.

He hit the car, not Erk.

The car sped off, out of Colby's range.

"Nice shot," Levin smirked.

"What do you mean? He got away!" Lon'qu said angrily, staring at Levin in disbelief.

"It wasn't a bullet. It was a homing device. Levin, get your computer ready, we've got a hunt," Colby grinned like a feral beast.

* * *

Ylisstol: Halidom Patent Office   
?

" _On my mark, enter in three…two…one,"_ came the voice in the man's ear.

"Copy that, King," said the agent. The man gripped the door handle and swung it open.

No one in the wide open room filled with filing cabinets.

"The room is clear," said the man.

" _I hear you loud and clear, Lancelot,"_ said King.

The agent, codenamed Lancelot, cocked his pistol, "How's the situation outside?"

" _HBI is here. Looks like the Director herself,"_ said King.  _"Sorry to go off topic, but why do we have to use these codenames? No one can monitor this channel, and these idiots here are too stupid to know us by name."_

"I think the nicknames are heroic and chivalrous, like me," said Lancelot with a grin.

" _Whatever. Now go across the room, there's a door. Get to it, then make the call. Remember, buy us as much time as you can."_

* * *

Ylisstol: Exterior of Patent Office   
Maribelle Adalric

"There's a call for you, ma'am," said one of her men, holding out a phone.

"Thank you," said Maribelle, taking the phone.

"Who would be calling at a time like this?" Chrom Caverly asked. The Prince was Maribelle's protégé. He had come in with big names recommending him. And he was very good.

Maribelle ignored the question and held the phone up to her ear, "Hello?"

" _Is this who's in charge!?"_ said a man wildly from the other side.

"Yes, who is this?" Maribelle asked, unfazed.

" _Listen ma'am, I'm inside here. You can't come in yet! The terrorist, he's got hostages!"_

"We've got no proof of that," Maribelle said sternly.

" _Look, I'm telling ya, if you come in here, you'll have ten corpses to show for it!"_ said the man on the line.

"Who are you?" Maribelle asked rudely.

" _Officer Lancelot, ma'am,"_ said the man.

"I shall take your words with consideration, Lancelot," Maribelle said shortly, and hung up the phone.

"What was that about?" Chrom asked.

"Apparently there's hostages inside. Along with another man, a policeman," Maribelle replied. "Percival!"

"Ma'am?" said the agent is question.

"What have our preliminary scans shown as for people inside the building?"

"Two, ma'am," said Percival.

"See?" Maribelle nodded at Chrom, "the man lied."

"Can I try talking to him?" Chrom asked.

Maribelle considered it, "…Fine. I suppose it'd be good practice."

* * *

Ylisstol: Interior of Patent Office   
Lancelot

Lancelot opened the door after the call and looked into the next room.

The terrorist was across the room, leafing through files of patents.

Lancelot was about to go forward, but the phone is his pocket buzzed. Thankfully he'd had the foresight to switch it to vibrate.

Lancelot swore as he pulled the phone out and opened it, "Yes?"

" _There aren't any hostages,"_ said the voice. It was a man's this time.

"I know," said Lancelot, thinking like lightning. "I wanted to get to a better position before you stormed the place."

" _How can I tell you're really an officer?"_ questioned the man.

Lancelot paused for a moment, "…You know the feeling when you talk to a man with a badge. Do you feel it?"

There was a long silence,  _"….I do."_

"I think I can take this guy, it's my duty. If you don't hear from me in three minutes, send in help," Lancelot said and hung up.

* * *

Ylisstol: Exterior of Patent Building   
Chrom Caverly

"He's legit," Chrom said as he put the phone down. "He wants us to wait for a few minutes before going in. He's going to try and take down the terrorist."

"He can be my guest. One man is an acceptable loss," said Maribelle.

"We're not even going to help him?" Chrom said in disbelief.

"We don't need to," shrugged Maribelle.

Chrom tried to think of an argument, but his eyes fell on Percival's rifle. Chrom walked toward the tall man and took the rifle.

"Agent, stand down. That is an order!" shouted Maribelle.

"One man's life is not an acceptable loss, ma'am! C'mon agents, let's go kill this sonuvabith!" Chrom shouted and cocked the rifle. A vast majority of the HBI agents cheered and followed Chrom to the building.

* * *

Ylisstol: Interior of Patent Office   
Lancelot

" _They're coming in. You don't have much time,"_ said King.

"Quiet, Hector. I need to concentrate," Lancelot said.

Hector shut up and Lancelot crept through the door towards the terrorist. Once the agent was behind the target, he cocked his pistol.

The terrorist froze stiff and slowly turned around to see an agent pointing a gun at him.

"Give that to me," said Lancelot, gesturing towards the file in the man's hands. On the file folder, the bold words read, 'The Rabbit's Foot.'

The terrorist handed it over, "Wh-who are you?"

Lancelot leveled the gun at the man's face.

"The name's Bond."

He fired a bullet straight through the man's skull.

"Sain Bond."

* * *

The Rabbit's Foot Job  
Mission:  **Failed**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really enjoyed writing that last sequence there at the end!


	19. The Shot Through the Heart Job: Part I

Job #8: The Shot Through The Heart

Part I

Ylisstol: Back Streets   
Leila Gryfflet

Leila leaned against the wall in the dark alley. The cold of a summer's night brushed against her, sending a couple shivers up her arms.

"I didn't think you'd show up," said a man's voice. It came from the dark, where Leila couldn't make out anyone.

Luckily, she knew the voice. He was the only one of the Black Fang she still respected, "Lloyd."

"Long time no see, Leila," Lloyd said, stepping closer to her.

Leila twisted her engagement ring on her finger nervously, "What do you want?"

Lloyd Reed scratched his stubble thoughtfully, "I came by to…ask a favor."

"You're in no real position to ask favors. I got out, I'm not a Fang anymore," Leila said, annoyed.

"Fair enough, but it's not like that. The Black Fang's going to run an assassination soon, and I need your help in preventing it," Lloyd said.

"…I wasn't expecting that," Leila admitted.

"Just hear me out? For old time's sake?" Lloyd insisted.

Leila nodded despite her personal feelings. Lloyd was the only trustworthy man in the Fang.

"In two days, there's going to be a big political event about the increasing tensions between the countries. At that event…"

* * *

YIA Headquarters: Holding Cell   
Stefan Gerrard

"Do these look familiar to you?" Stefan slid a file folder across the table.

Tharja glanced at it, and shook her head.

"You sure? You wrote them after all," Stefan mused, flipping the folder open to display several designs. "A dear friend of mine retrieved this from the Ylisstol Patent Office. These are the plans of how to construct the Rabbit's Foot."

"Exciting," Tharja said in a bored voice.

"Sterling doesn't have the activation code," Stefan said.

"Your point?" Tharja asked, uninterested.

"He needs either you, me or the Exalt if he wants to blow it up," Stefan said.

"Congrats, you came to a conclusion. That's the first all day," Tharja said.

"So what's to stop me from shooting you? I have all the reason," Stefan said with an edge to his voice, reaching into his suit coat pocket and removing a revolver.

"Because you don't like to shoot women," Tharja said. A dark smirk descended onto her face, "After what happened to your wife."

Stefan's eyes flashed.

_The Mastermind stood at the top of a tall building, his rifle poised and ready to fire._

"You have the shot," _Colby Arturian said through the com link._

" _I know," muttered Stefan._

"Green…I'm not sure about this,"  _Gaius said nervously._

" _It has to be done," Stefan said. "And I can do it. Virion's not good enough."_

"Decide quickly,"  _Erk said._

_His eyes were fixed on Robin Sterling. The man had recently turned, and on orders from the Director, they were to eliminate him._

_Naturally, the team chose the best option to distract him._

_Their Grifter, Anna._

_But things had gone wrong._

_Now Robin held Anna in a choke hold in front of his body. Stefan could see a part of Sterling's head that wasn't covered up by Anna._

_If he hit Robin…it would change everything._

_But if he missed…_

_Stefan tightened his finger on the trigger and held the gun tighter with his other sweaty hand._

_Now or never._

_Stefan fired._

_As if in slow motion, the bullet shot across the street to where Robin stood with his wife._

_Stefan watched as his wife's head jerked back abruptly and her body fell limp._

_The Mastermind dropped the weapon in shock._

Stefan blinked. Suddenly, he was back to the present.

"You… _dare_ …bring up my wife to me!?" Stefan screamed.

Tharja's eyes widened as Stefan picked up the revolver. He smashed the chamber open and removed five of the six bullets in a furious rush. Slamming the chamber back into place, he spun it with force, not knowing whether the bullet was up for the next shot or not.

Stefan grabbed Tharja around the neck tightly and brought the gun to her face and shoved it into her mouth.

" _WHERE IS STERLING!?"_ Stefan screamed.

Tharja's eyes went wide and she began to shake. Stefan tightened his grip on her neck and pulled the trigger.

Click.

Stefan pulled the hammer back and pushed the gun further into her mouth.

" _WHAT IS HE PLANNING!?"_ Stefan screamed again.

Tears began to pour out of Tharja's eyes. She began to whimper.

Stefan pulled the trigger.

Click.

"That's two shots now," Stefan said, calmer, but with fury in his voice. "You've got a twenty five percent chance of dying. Now tell me what I WANT TO KNOW!"

Tharja began to talk through tears and a gun in her mouth, "I-I don't k-know!"

Stefan pulled the hammer back.

"Please!" Tharja shouted as best she could.

Stefan pulled the trigger.

Click.

A new spout of tears hit Tharja.

"Consider yourself lucky," Stefan growled. "Have you reconsidered?"

Stefan pulled the gun out of her mouth and allowed her to talk, "I-I don't know wh-what he's trying to do, I was only there b-because of the Rabbit's Foot!"

Stefan pointed the gun right next to Tharja's ear, the barrel facing the wall but the gun itself right by her ear.

Stefan pulled the trigger.

_Bang!_

He threw the gun down.

"Don't ever presume that you can get to me," said Stefan in the coldest voice he'd ever heard himself utter.

With that, he walked out of the room and was met by Sigurd.

"Hello…Sigurd," Stefan said quietly. "You saw that?"

Sigurd nodded mutely.

"I'm turning questioning over to you. Break her."

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center   
Jaffar Beauregard

Only a matter of time now.

Jaffar lithely climbed up the rafters and nestled into a dark corner.

Ephidel had told him it wouldn't be long. Maybe an hour, two at most.

The assassin was not good at waiting. He was meant for action.

To keep his mind off his impatience, he put together his silenced sniper rifle.

Jaffar checked the sights.

He didn't want to miss this convention, not for the world.

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center   
Noah Rogers

"When are we live?" the newscaster asked.

"We're live in ten…nine…eight…" said the cameraman.

Noah cleared his throat and held the microphone at the appropriate height and waited for the go sign.

The cameraman pointed at him.

"Good evening Ylisse, this is Noah Rogers from Ylisstol Broadcasting Nightly News," Noah said in his cheerful voice. "Tonight, we bring you coverage live from the convention center. In about twenty minutes, the Exalt is going to host peace talks with diplomats from Plegia and Ferox. Obviously, this will be done in private, but her highness is delivering a speech before the meeting in roughly ten minutes. Stay tuned, Ylisse. I'll be back to cover this story myself."

The screen that said live flashed off. The cameraman nodded with approval.

"What do you think of this, Ephraim?" Noah asked.

"…I think that these peace talks could mean a complete difference in the world. This may be the start of friendship between countries," Ephraim said.

Noah nodded thoughtfully, "Makes sense. I just know something big is going to happen. And I'm ready to report it."

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center   
Leila Gryfflet

Leila climbed up to the rafters as best she could. She was out of practice, after all. It had been a long time since she'd done this sort of work.

Once she was up within the rafters and probably more than a hundred feet off the ground, she began looking for the Fang assassin.

If Lloyd was right, then Jaffar would be here. Leila knew his style, but that didn't guarantee that she'd find him immediately.

Leila removed a silenced gun that had been held in place by the elastic on her pants. Loading it, she began to hunt the hunter.

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center   
Astol

The old thief lit a cigarette as he looked down from his vantage point. He could see Jaffar waiting.

The Fang was good, from what Astol had heard. Even a thief like him knew Jaffar's reputation. He'd never missed a shot in his professional career.

Astol had no quarrel with any of Sterling's enemies, but the man had a great deal of money. And Astol operated on money.

A brief flash of movement caught Astol's eyes. He saw a woman with purple hair climbing stealthily up the rafters as well.

Astol smirked and took a puff of his cigarette.

Everything was going to plan.

* * *

Ylisstol: Back Streets   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa grunted as she moved her arm. Her shoulder throbbed and gave her immense pain.

But she pressed on through the dark alleys. Revenge ran hot through her blood.

Lloyd.

The man had betrayed her. He knew Anderson had been inside the building torturing Cordelia. He sent Marisa and Renault into a trap.

And Marisa knew a set up when she saw one.

The pink haired woman approached the Black Fang's headquarters where Lloyd was most likely going to be. It was a shady apartment building. But what stuck out was a green flag that had a black wolf's head, its fangs flashing.

There was a guard at the door. Marisa recognized him as Denning. The fool never said much, but he was an adept fighter. One did not trifle with Denning when the man had a firearm.

Marisa approached Denning with confidence. Once she was right in front of him, he cocked his head quizzically.

Marisa rolled up the sleeve of her shirt on her right arm and flashed Denning with her underarm.

An elegant F was tattooed to her skin.

Denning nodded. He didn't have to recognize her, only Fangs had the tattoo.

He stepped aside. Marisa walked into the building.

She was in.

* * *

Ylisstol: Outskirts   
Colby Arturian

Colby pressed the trigger. Erk's car exploded.

The Hacker spun around on the spot amidst the screaming civilians. He had just exited his car.

Colby stood a distance away in the parking lot. He pressed his finger against his ear so he could hear the com better, "Levin, move in."

As Colby predicted, Erk began to run.

"Lon'qu, target is running. Engage him, but allow Levin to get into position first," Colby ordered.

" _Understood, team leader,"_ Lon'qu said.

From his vantage point, Colby saw Lon'qu intercept Erk. They quickly engaged in a fight.

For being a Hacker, Erk was quite good at physical combat. But Lon'qu was not there to take down Erk, but to distract him.

Colby allowed a rare smile as he saw how focused Erk was on the fight. Levin was able to run up to the computer bag Erk had dropped and plant something inside the computer.

The chip Levin planted would allow him to obtain all of the information on the computer, as well as watch his every move on the Erk's computer screen.

And if worse came to worse, it would cause the computer to explode, killing Erk.

Levin ran from the bag quickly, but silently and went unnoticed.

"Objective complete. Lon'qu, you know what to do," Colby said.

Colby assumed Lon'qu heard his order.

The man in question was putting up a fight against Erk and looked surprised he was having as much trouble as he was.

But in this case, that worked to Lon'qu's advantage.

The Feroxi man pretended to slip up, allowing Erk to get a punch through to his solar plexus. Lon'qu fell to the ground, gasping for breath.

Erk let Lon'qu fall. The Hacker grabbed his computer bag and made a break for it. To add to the plan, Levin burst out from a car back about a hundred feet and fired several shots from his pistol.

He missed on purpose, of course. They needed Erk to escape.

And escape he did.

"Mission accomplished," said Colby.

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center   
Emmeryn Caverly

Emmeryn stepped out of the limo at the large building. Camera flashes were everywhere, reporters screamed questions hoping she'd answer.

But not today. Emmeryn had more important things to worry about. Like the speech she was about to give.

Her secret service escorted her inside, headed by Sully and Kjelle Braddock.

Emmeryn walked through the back hallways until she was near a door that would lead her to the mob of people waiting for the result of the summit.

But before entering the room with the Plegians and Feroxi, she had to address her people.

"Ma'am, are you ready?" came Sully's gruff voice from right next to the door.

Emmeryn took a deep breath and nodded.

Sully and Kjelle opened the door and Emmeryn walked out into the mass of people.

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center: Rafters   
Jaffar Beauregard

Jaffar perked up as he heard the crowd intensify. He picked up his rifle and cocked it.

He set his sights on Emmeryn. Jaffar'd end this before it started.

That is, he would have had the butt of a gun not hit him in the temple.

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center: Rafters  
Leila Gryfflet

Leila let out her held breath as she lowered the pistol she'd beaten Jaffar down with.

"My fellow Ylisseans…" Exalt Emmeryn's voice wafted through the air towards Leila's ears.

Leila put her gun away, using her pants as a holster. She began to pay attention.

"In these past few months, this country has been subjected to more terrorist attacks than it has been in the past decade. And I will not stand for that!" Emmeryn shouted to the crowd's approval. "As of this day, I will not rest until these terrorists are brought to justice! I will not rest until Robin Sterling has been defeated!"

The crowd roared. Leila even felt some hope that Ylisse's situation might be resolved.

Then she felt a sharp pain to the back of the skull.

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center   
Noah Rogers

Noah Rogers stood off camera, silent. Exalt Emmeryn was giving her speech, there was no need for him at the moment.

Unknown to him, that would soon change.

Noah watched his queen intently. In fact, he was so focused, he almost missed it.

On the corner of the stage, one of her secret service began to move. It was Kjelle Braddock, and she made a break towards her Queen.

Noah's jaw dropped as he heard a gunshot.

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center   
Jaffar Beauregard

Jaffar swore under his breath as his bullet missed his target and killed the woman from the security detail. She was dead, but that still left a living Exalt.

Jaffar cocked the gun and brought it back up to his eyes. Sully Braddock had begun returning fire.

The crowd was in an absolute panic. People ran in every direction, though most scrambled towards the exit doors in a mad furor.

Jaffar took careful aim. He watched as other members began escorting Emmeryn out of the open. There were several small openings on his target. The assassin allowed a rare and slight grin as he fired again.

This time the Exalt fell to the ground.

Jaffar didn't bother looking. He knew he hit her. The assassin turned around to where the unconscious body of Leila lay. He took the sniper rifle and with her hand, scattered fingerprints on it. He then took a small sheet of paper and put it in one of her pockets.

Lastly, Jaffar removed a syringe. It was filled with adrenaline. He took her arm and jabbed into a vein with precision and speed.

Leila's eyes shot open and she began gasping for air. But by that time, Jaffar was already making his exit.

* * *

Ylisstol Convention Center: Rafters   
Sain Bond

"I'm telling you, Hector, that no shooter would have stuck around," Sain insisted on the com channel.

" _We can't take that chance. Check the rafters, I'll meet you at the hospital where the Exalt is,"_ Hector said as he disconnected.

Sain sighed as he climbed the rafters. Why was he doing this? He was the best damn agent in the business, not some criminal investigator who—

A fist hit him in the stomach. Sain reacted without thinking, he brought up an arm to block the next attack. The woman who was attacking him leaned back as Sain took a swipe at her.

"Hello, beautiful," grinned Sain as he got a good look at her.

"W-what?" the woman said, her concentration breaking.

Sain delivered a cross chop to her neck, rendering her unconscious.

And being the gentleman he was, he picked up the woman bridal style and leaned her against a wall.

And proceeded to search her pockets.

When Sain came upon a sheet of paper, he frowned. It looked like things were a bit more serious than he had thought.

Pulling out a cellphone, he dialed an old friend, "Stef? I've got news for you. And you won't like it."

* * *

Ylisstol: Hospital   
Hector Asten

Hector walked right into the room where the Exalt was located. The Queen's secret service let him pass without complaint, they knew he was coming.

Inside the room, a man with green hair was pacing back and forth.

"Hello Stef. Sorry to be here under such circumstances," said Hector.

Stefan waved him off, "Forget it—"

Doctor Laurent stepped into the room, "She'll live."

Hector watched happiness dance across Stefan's eyes before saying, "Complications?"

Laurent nodded, "Indeed. She's in bad shape, the bullet pierced the base of her neck right where the collar bone meets the—"

"Just tell me it simply," Stefan ordered.

Laurent nodded, "The bullet hit the base of her neck. She lost a lot of blood, and is unconscious. Not to mention when she fell she hit the ground quite hard. But she will live, although the next two months she'll have to spend here. At least."

Stefan let out a breath he was holding.

Hector's phone began to ring. Irritated, he held it up to his ear, "Yes?"

The voice on the other side told him something. Something he didn't want to hear.

Hector held out the phone to Stefan, "Take this. It's Marisa, one of my co-workers. You need to talk to her."

As Stefan took the phone, Hector noticed movement under the door. A card slipped through the bottom.

It was a cheery get well card. Hector opened it.

_Next time my assassins won't be so generous.  
-Sterling_


	20. The Shot to the Heart Job: Part II

The Shot Through The Heart Job

Part II

Matthew's Apartment   
Matthew Brooks

Matthew yawned as he woke up, the sun streaming in through the windows onto his face. He frowned, having forgotten to close the blinds.

The detective got out of bed. But when he looked over to the other side for his purple haired companion, he was disappointed that she wasn't there.

_Probably already up,_  Matthew dismissed.

He entered the main room of the apartment. Like he usually did, he grabbed the TV remote and put on the news. The habit had helped out Matthew a few times, especially when there was a major crime during the dead of night and told him how quickly he and Leila had to rush to the precinct.

But this time was different.

Matthew's ears perked up as he heard the familiar voice of Ylisse's main newscaster, Noah Rogers speaking.

" _Yesterday, the unthinkable happened. At eight in the evening, there was an assassination attempt on our Queen. Thankfully, the Exalt is still alive. But the public is still shocked and outraged. They demand that the assailant be brought to justice. The government hasn't released any details about the incident, but a source revealed they have a suspect. Her name is Leila Gryfflet—"_

Matthew didn't even wait to let the newscaster finish his sentence. Getting dressed quicker than ever before, Matthew dashed out the door.

* * *

?   
Robin Sterling

"Sorry for asking, but why are you asking my brothers and I when the rumors say you've already hired the Black Fang for the exact same task?" asked the assassin, curiously.

"Oscar, I don't trust the Black Fang," Sterling said. "You, Boyd and Rolf have a reputation for being loyal to the end to your employers. Not to mention you're all very good."

"If you had wanted the Exalt dead, she'd be dead," Oscar said. "Why isn't she?"

Sterling chuckled, "Why indeed. I suppose I wanted to make Stefan squirm."

"Fair enough. The Exalt is in Ylissean Central Hospital, correct?" Oscar clarified.

Sterling nodded, "Kill her and any that try and oppose you."

Oscar nodded and left the room. Sterling picked up his phone and dialed Kellam.

"Mr. Anderson, I believe you need to go retrieve Tharja. We've let Stefan hold onto her for far too long."

* * *

YIA Holding Cell   
Leila Gryfflet

Leila opened her eyes slowly. Her head pounded from several successive blows to the skull. It was a miracle she didn't have a concussion.

Once she regained her bearings, Leila noticed a man sitting in a chair across from her. He had blue hair and smiled kindly at her.

"Hello, my dear. My name is Sigurd, and I have a few questions for you," said the man.

Leila's eyes flew around the room. There was a mirror on the wall that was very clearly a one way window. She was being watched.

"You're Black Fang, are you not?" Sigurd said, opening a file folder in front of him and removing a picture of Leila's tattoo. It was a large F, which was black.

"Where…am I?" she muttered, blinking several times.

"Answer the question, Ms. Gryfflet," Sigurd said sternly.

"I'm not…anymore," Leila said slowly.

"Why were you at the Ylissean Convention Center yesterday?" Sigurd asked.

"A friend…asked me to help him prevent an assassination," Leila said.

"A friend?"

"Lloyd Reed," she replied.

"One of the Black Fang," Sigurd said, casting a brief glance at the window. "I thought you said you had left."

"I had, but—"

"But here you are helping on of its members," Sigurd said, standing up. "I'll be back shortly, Ms. Gryfflet. There are some people I must speak to."

* * *

YPD Precinct   
Matthew Brooks

"What the hell was that on the TV?" Matthew shouted as soon as he entered to precinct. The place was in a mad furor. Not only was it the wake of an assassination attempt, but one of their own was suspected. One that the department as a whole respected.

"Come with me," Stahl said, grabbing Matthew by the arm dragging him to the conference room.

Inside, some of the team was present. It was early in the morning, some had yet to arrive.

"Gregor is pleased you are here," said the older man in a hard tone. "Gregor and friends have lots of planning to do."

As Matthew sat down and was about to ask what was going on, Legault burst into the room and announced, "I have news."

"How did you manage to get anything?" Mia asked, quizzically. Heather nodded her head, agreeing.

"You forget, I'm HBI. I have friends in high places, ones that owe me," Legault smirked. He sat down at the table.

Clearing his throat, Legault began, "Leila is being held prisoner by the YIA. That means they think she's a serious threat. One of my friends says that the top brass think it was the Black Fang."

"Damn. Leila's tattoo," said Matthew, his fists clenched.

"What tattoo?" Heather asked curiously.

"Leila is ex-Black Fang," Matthew said. "Just like all the members, she has a tattoo."

"That brings me to my next bit. They think she's still with the Black Fang," Legault continued. "And unless we can prove it, she'll get the electric chair. And we don't have much time, the public outcry is enormous."

"We should be able to manage that, right?" Stahl said, looking around the table.

"One last thing, and it's a big detail," Legault said. "Turns out the Fang was supposedly hired by Plegia. We're not just looking at one of our friends dying, we're looking at the possibility of an outbreak of war."

* * *

Black Fang Hideout   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa had searched the entire place. There was no one there.

She'd spent the entire night searching for anything of value to where the core members of the Fang could be. No luck.

That is, until she heard the door open.

It could have been Denning, but the WIA didn't associate the footfalls with that of light-footed Denning.

Pulling a knife out into her left hand, she waited behind the door into the main room.

The door swung open, and a large man walked in.

Linus Reed.

Marisa watch him as he examined the room. She knew that he knew it had been searched. Therefore she used the time he used examining to sneak up on him.

Marisa jumped Linus, thrusting the knife next to his neck.

"The hell—" Linus shouted before feeling the steel at his neck.

"Don't shout," said Marisa in a soft voice.

"Oh, you," Linus grunted. "I never thought I'd see you again."

"Where's your damn brother?" Marisa said.

"Why would I tell you?" Linus said.

"He set me up to get killed. And my friend is now dead. Plus, I have a knife to your neck," Marisa said. "And you know how I am with knives."

"If Lloyd set you up, it's because you deserved it," Linus growled. He tried to move his right hand, but wasn't quick enough. Marisa grabbed his wrist and twisted, breaking it.

To his credit, Linus didn't scream. He merely grunted in pain.

"Now, are you going to tell me what I want to know?" Marisa asked, a scowl on her face.

"Bitch," breathed Linus.

"I get that a lot," Marisa said.

Suddenly, her trained ears heard a faint sound. A step creaking. Someone was walking up the stairs.

Acting without thinking, Marisa grabbed Linus around the neck and held him in front of her. She pulled the gun from her thigh and pointed it at the door.

The door burst open and a gunshot rang out. Denning shot at the first thing he saw.

Which turned out to be Linus.

Marisa felt the man die as his weight became all so apparent, given that he no longer held himself up. The WIA agent fired her pistol twice, both shots hitting Denning in the chest.

She dropped Linus, swearing fiercely. Her arm throbbed in pain. Though Marisa was surprised she had managed to hold up Linus at all.

But this left Marisa with nothing. Except two corpses.

* * *

YIA Headquarters: Sigurd's Office   
Sigurd Di'Arganan

"Yes Tiltyu, I'll be home on time," Sigurd chuckled. "Don't worry."

" _Y'all better be right this time, Siggy,"_ Tiltyu said over the phone.

"I've got to go, I'll see you later," Sigurd smiled.

" _Bye!"_ shouted Tiltyu.

Sigurd hung up just as Farina poked her head into the room. Sigurd looked up and asked, "Has the girl cracked yet?"

Farina shook her head, "She keeps denying it. Sain is on his way from the hospital. He's going to try his hand at 'the fair maiden.'"

"Hopefully he means that metaphorically," Sigurd said, massaging his forehead.

Sigurd's phone began to ring. Puzzled, he picked it up.

Gunfire.

" _Sigurd, get your ass down here! We've got company!"_  shouted Kris.

The line went dead.

"What the heck?" Sigurd said, still holding the phone to his ear.

A loud siren blazed through the building.

"Shit," Farina said.

* * *

YIA Headquarters: Holding Area   
Kris Holst

Kris was in bad shape. He'd been guarding the Black Fang woman when a wall near him had exploded.

Men garbed in black had entered through the hole. But they ran away from him.

Kellam Anderson, however, did not.

Kris barely got on his feet when Kellam punched him in the gut. The Hitter was thrown backward by the force of the strike.

"Hello there, Holst. Been a while, huh?" Kellam said.

Kris only coughed in response.

"You know, you're the first person in a long time who came up against me on even ground and walked away," Kellam said. "Time to fix that."

Kris brought up his fists, letting Kellam make the next move.

Kellam flung his foot at Kris. The Hitter used his arm to block the attack. While Kellam's foot was still in the air for a brief period, Kris thrust his fist forward and hit Kellam in the shoulder.

Kellam barely flinched, as he returned the blow with a hit on Kris' shoulder.

The YIA agent stumbled backward and tried to regain his footing. Kellam lashed out a foot and tripped the Hitter, sending him to the ground with a hard fall.

"Sir!" Kris heard amidst the pain as he tried to get up. He landed on his leg weird. Was it broken?

He moved it and was able to contain the pain.

Fracture.

Kris looked up to see the men from before escorting Tharja back to where they'd blown a hole through the wall.

"Very good, captain," Kellam smirked. He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a gun. "And you Kris, were less than good. Though I guess I caught you unawares. Surprises are a bitch, huh?"

Kellam Anderson fired, and Kris knew no more.

* * *

Black Fang Hideout   
Sain Bond

Sain walked through the door without interference. He wasn't surprised.

"Come on out," he called through the building. One of their own was here still. Stefan had sent him here on account of an agent who had gone off the grid.

A woman pointed a gun at his head from behind him, "Don't move."

How had she gotten behind him?

Sain raised his hands in the air and chuckled, "You got me. But what is a beauteous angel such as yourself doing here?"

"Shut up. Who do you work for?" she said, angrily.

Sain just laughed, and mid-laugh kicked a leg back, hitting the woman in the shin. He spun at lightning speed and smashed the gun out of her hand with his arm. She dropped it, but Sain snatched it out of the air, and pointed it at the woman who now was weaponless.

"I work for myself. Sain Bond, freelance agent," said Sain with a grin. "How about you?"

"Marisa Beckett, YIA. Who hired you?" she growled.

"Not really in a position to talk, are you? Oh well, I'll give you one because you're such a beautiful woman," Sain grinned. "Stefan hired me. And when he said pretty girls were in danger, my sense of honor couldn't let me turn down such an offer!"

"You're an idiot," she grumbled.

Sain handed the gun back to her and began to walk out the door, "So, are you coming?"

"Why?" she merely said.

"You have a deathwish and a desire for revenge, and I have the location of the real Black Fang Hideout. What say you?" he grinned.

"Damn flirt," growled Marisa, but she went along.

* * *

Ylissean Central Hospital   
Hector Asten

"What's even happening out there?" Stefan muttered to himself.

"You could go and find out," Hector said.

"I'm not leaving Emm's side. Sterling will still be after her," the Director declared.

Hector shrugged, "Then let's talk about what we know."

"First off, there was an assassination attempt by the Black Fang," Stefan began. "According to Sain and Sigurd, it was apparently Plegian driven. But there's no proof of that."

"Plegia doesn't want a war," Hector said. "Sain and I have done some recon on their government. They've been trying to write up a treaty for the other two nations to sign."

"If that's the case, then who would have something to gain by setting up Plegia?" Stefan said.

"Would Ylisse go to war over the murder of their ruler?" Hector asked.

"No," Stefan said. "We're not that hot-blooded of people. We're not Feroxi. But it would trigger some Ylissean violence toward Plegia."

"Could that include bombing of facilities?" Hector asked.

"Absolutely. But why do you say that…?" Stefan began to ask, but his eyes narrowed.

"There you go," Hector nodded. He was proud of the intelligence he didn't usually get to display.

"Sterling. He'd use the Rabbit's Foot on Plegia," Stefan breathed. "That would ignite a war between the two countries. And the Feroxi would see it as Ylissean aggression, that's how their culture works. They'd side with Plegia. The countries would destroy each other."

"So in other words, we need to eradicate the Black Fang before any more suspicion can be created," Hector said.

Stefan picked up his phone and dialed, "Sain? You have a new assignment. I'm sending you coordinates of a WIA agent that has been off the grid for about twenty four hours. Find her, and help her destroy the Black Fang. Completely."

"Better call Sigurd and tell him that has to crack that Fang Sain brought in," Hector advised.

Stefan nodded and dialed the phone again, "Sigurd, I have something for you to—"

Hector watched as the Director fell silent, listening to whatever Sigurd was telling him. And from his expression, he didn't like it.

"Damn," breathed Stefan. "Send Farina and Mark after her. You're in charge of the YIA while I'm gone. And I have news, Plegia wasn't behind the assassination. It was Sterling. Find out what that woman knows, and contact me again."

Stefan hung up.

"What was that about?" Hector asked.

"Kellam Anderson just broke into the YIA and grabbed Tharja. And killed my Hitter," Stefan said.

Before Hector could respond, there was a knock on the door. The blue haired man got up from his chair and opened the door.

A woman who was much shorter than him burst into the room.

Stefan looked at her quizzically, "You're…Cath? One of the WIA?"

"Ex-WIA, but that doesn't matter," Cath said quickly. "We've got to get the Exalt out of here!"

"Her condition isn't stable enough for movement," Stefan said.

"Then get ready for a fight, the Wright brothers are here," Cath said.

Hector immediately closed the door. Rolf, Boyd and Oscar Wright were three assassins that had a reputation for getting jobs done.

"Are you sure?" Stefan said, jumping to his feet.

Cath nodded, "I just came to warn you. Gaius' crew sent me ahead. They got held up."

"Held up?" Hector asked.

"Black Fang," Cath said.

The lights died. Everything went pitch black.

"They killed the power," said Stefan.

"No shit," muttered Hector.

"We've got to get the power back. Think of how many patients need power to live in here!" Cath said.

A few lights blinked back on. The hospital's emergency generator.

"We're still fighting the clock," Stefan said. "Cath, go try and get the power back on. Hector and I will take on whoever tries to kill the Queen."

"Understood," she said before running off.

* * *

Ylisstol Outskirts: Lycian Bridge   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius ducked down behind the tipped car and reloaded his gun.

He, his crew and the three WIA agents were ambushed on the Lycian Bridge on their way back from their last assignment.

Needless to say, several bombs had exploded, causing cars to flip. Gaius' crew utilized the cover to fight back against the aggressors: the Black Fang.

"How many are left?" Gaius asked.

Frederick had a hand covering his arm, where he'd been shot. He coughed as he answered, "There were five to begin with. We got one for sure."

"Damn professionals," muttered Virion. The three were holed up behind a flipped van. Eliwood and Cecilia were pressing the Fang to Gaius' left while Morgan, Anna and Lissa were covering to the right. Neither of the three were very good marksmen, so they did most of the hiding between the three groups.

"Jerme is dead," Virion clarified. "Ursula got hit, but I don't think it killed her."

"Who else is left?" Gaius said as he slammed the clip into his pistol.

"Brenden Reed, Sonia Reed and one other I haven't managed to get a good look at," said Virion. Virion Chandler jumped up from their cover and fired several times with no success.

"These pricks certainly planned this well," Frederick said.

"At least we got Cath to escape. Hopefully she'll bring the information Lissa found out straight to Stefan," Gaius said.

"We need something to break through," Frederick said. He leaned forward and took off his left boot. Gaius watched with a raised eyebrow as Frederick poked around inside it, finally removing a grenade.

"What the bloody fuck, Freddy Bear?" Gaius said.

"I may not like guns, but explosives are a different matter," the man said with a rare smile.

Virion grabbed the grenade while Gaius merely stared at Frederick. The Prosecutor motioned to Eliwood who noticed and nodded. Virion poked up from behind the car and chucked the grenade at where two Fangs were hiding.

Gaius, amidst the gunfire, could hear the  _tink_  of the grenade hitting the bottom of a car.

_BOOM!_

The car exploded, sending fire everywhere.

Frederick peeked out from the hiding place, assuming it was safe given the stunt Virion just pulled. He quickly came back into safety and reported, "That wounded woman, Ursula is dead. I think Brenden Reed was in the blast as well."

"Good," Gaius said. He made eye contact with Eliwood and pointed two fingers at the surviving Fang members. He then turned and made eye contact with Morgan. Morgan didn't need an order, she just jumped up and began unloading her pistol in the direction of the Fangs.

Cover fire.

Eliwood and Cecilia jumped from behind their car and began to advance, shooting whenever someone would pop their head out from behind an obstacle.

Gaius rolled out of his cover zone and began to advance as well, Virion providing cover fire.

The woman, Sonia, came into view. She was holding a shotgun. As she brought it up to fire, before Gaius could react, Morgan shot the woman through the heart. Gaius turned and gave Morgan a disbelieving look. The redhead merely continued to shoot, evidently not caring.

Gaius was shaken out of his trance by a scream. He turned on the spot to see Cecilia on the ground.

Not moving.

Eliwood cried out and looked for the shooter.

A young girl stood outside her cover, looking horrified.

Eliwood brought up his pistol and with a look of rage, shot the girl.

The green haired woman collapsed, dead.

Eliwood ran to Cecilia's side. Gaius was already on his way when Eliwood shot the woman.

The thief felt the woman's neck for a pulse.

Nothing.

"Shit," muttered Gaius.

There was another gunshot. Eliwood fell over onto the ground without a noise.

Gaius whipped his head up, looking for the shooter. No one else was left!

Brenden Reed leaned on a car as he held a gun, his arm shaking.

"Bastard!" shouted Virion as he shot the older man. This time, he did die.

Frederick hobbled out from where he had been and crouched by Gaius, "Are they alive?"

The orange haired man shook his head.

* * *

8305 Valor Street   
Marisa Beckett

The two sat in the front of a car as they looked at the mansion.

"That's the Black Fang's base of operations," Sain said.

"Lloyd is in there?" Marisa asked.

"Perhaps. What's your obsession with him about?" Sain asked.

"He set me and a friend up. Now my friend is dead, and so is the woman we tried to rescue," Marisa said through grit teeth.

Sain nodded, "We're facing some tough odds. There are likely going to be more of them than us. Probably twenty to one odds."

"Sounds like a party," Marisa said stoically.

"Damn, couldn't have said it better myself. Are you available?" Sain asked.

"No," Marisa said simply.

"Just my luck," Sain said, disappointed. "Why are the good ones always taken!?"

"Shut up," Marisa said. "Do you have a plan?"

"Kind of. C'mon," Sain said, getting out of the car.

He led Marisa to the back of the car, where he popped the trunk.

It was empty.

Marisa gave him a glare and Sain only smirked.

He reached deep inside the trunk and pressed a button. The bottom popped open and Sain grabbed the false bottom and pulled it up.

"Can I buy this car off you?" Marisa asked.

"It really brings out the inner psychopath, huh?" Sain said with a grin.

Inside the trunk were at least a dozen guns of different sizes.

"Suit up, fair maiden. Let's go wage war on the Black Fang," Sain said with vigor.


	21. The Shot through the Heart Job: Part III: Finale

The Shot Through The Heart Job

Part III: Finale

YIA Holding Cell   
Leila Gryfflet

"I'll be honest, Ms. Gryfflet. This isn't looking good for you," Sigurd said. He looked weary, as if he'd witnessed some things he'd rather have not witnessed.

"How so?" Leila said in a neutral tone. She had managed to regain her composure during the long hours in the cell quite easily.

"First, you were at the location from whence the bullet was shot," Sigurd began. "Then your finger prints are covered across the sniper rifle."

"Are they in logical places?" Leila said. "If they aren't, then that proves that they were planted."

"Or it proves you were in a rush," Sigurd suggested.

"I didn't have the rifle with me when I was attacked by that man of yours," Leila snapped back.

"How about you explain this?" Sigurd pulled a sheet of paper from his pocket. He unfolded it and handed it to her.

Leila scanned it. It was a hand drawn layout of the Convention Center. Above it, was a photograph of the Exalt.

"I fail to see the significance," Leila said.

"In the bottom right corner," Sigurd said. "Three letters: PSI. That's Plegia's equivalent of the YIA. That is possible conformation that you were working indirectly for the Plegian government."

"What? No, this isn't real. And we're proving my involvement in the Black Fang, not Plegia," Leila said.

Sigurd raised an eyebrow, "Interesting response. That clears things up nicely for some matters."

"What?"

"No, this isn't real, you were correct there. But how did you know? All Black Fang members are masters of forging techniques. You immediate recognition of that fact proves you were at one point a member," Sigurd said.

"So that leaves us where?" Leila said, her tone ambiguous.

"I'll be honest, I don't think you did it," Sigurd said. Leila breathed a sigh of relief. "However, that doesn't mean I can just let you go. The police have to find evidence against another Black Fang member. Call it our deal with them. We took control of the paper we found on you to confirm that Ylisse wouldn't be involved in a war. They got to go suspect hunting."

"So that leaves us where?" Leila repeated.

"You can start by telling me everything you know about the Black Fang," Sigurd said.

"They have bases around the entire city. They've dug in, you'll never get any serious member there unless by pure chance. However, the address 8305 Valor Street is where the main base is. You can guarantee that someone of the inner circle is there," Leila said.

"8305 you said?" Sigurd confirmed. Leila nodded. The blue haired man smiled, "That's good, we've got two people about the clear out the place. That confirms what our agents thought."

"Two people can't take on the Black Fang hideout. There's at least forty people there," Leila said.

Sigurd laughed, "Does the name Marisa Beckett ring a bell?"

"She was a Fang," Leila said. "…Are you saying  _she_ is the one going there?"

"Indeed," Sigurd said. He picked up his phone, "Now, if you'll excuse me please, I need to call the YPD. Your fiancée will be quite eager to hear that he can free you with the evidence he'll find there."

"How did you know—"

"I'm a secret agent, Miss Gryfflet. It's my job," said Sigurd as he dialed.

* * *

YPD Precinct   
Matthew Brooks

"The way Gregor sees it, friends must find real killer," Gregor stated.

"Thanks, genius," Matthew muttered under his breath.

"Let's start with what we know," Stahl said. "We know the culprit was a member of the Black Fang."

"But we don't know where to find them," said Mia.

"True, but we have three places that they could be, according to our file on them," Stahl said.

"Have there been any incidences of suspicious activity at any of the three options in the past twenty four hours?" Legault asked.

Stahl opened his mouth when Gregor's phone began to ring. The Chief of Police jumped as if he'd been spooked.

"Chief of Police, what can Gregor do for you?" Gregor said.

The older man listened for several moments before giving Stahl a 'write this down' motion. "Suspicious activity at 8305 Valor Street? Gunfire, you say? Worry not citizen! Gregor and friends are on the go!"

Stahl jotted down the address.

"And what is your name, citizen? …Sigurd, my lad, help is on the way!" Gregor said with vigor.

As the Chief hung up, Stahl said, "This isn't one of our three places."

"Gregor shall put the entire force on the investigating of the places. Gregor and friends shall take care of the call, just in case," Gregor said.

Matthew jumped up, "Let's go. Faster we move, the faster we get to Leila."

Stahl nodded, "Let me just grab a muffin."

"No muffin breaks Stahl, we gotta go," Matthew insisted, and ran out the door followed by the rest, including Gregor.

* * *

8305 Valor Street   
Marisa Beckett

"Ever taken part in a raid before?" Sain asked as they walked up the long driveway to the mansion through the dark of night.

"Of course," Marisa said.

"One with these odds?" Sain asked, an eyebrow raised.

Marisa chuckled, "I stormed a room full of twenty Valmese mobsters once."

Sain rolled his eyes, "It's not like that was a challenge. Valmese mobsters are a joke."

"That's probably why I walked away alive," Marisa said with a slight grin.

"Fair enough," chuckled Sain. He grabbed both the shotguns that were strapped to his back and loaded them.

Marisa took her rifle and made sure the sight was calibrated. At her waist were two pistols, three grenades and a knife. Hanging from a strap on her back was a machine gun. Thanks to her being a WIA agent and having trained to use both styles of shooting, right handed and left, her shoulder could be compensated for.

Sain had similar weapons at his belt. But instead of a rifle, he had the two shotguns plus two machine guns.

The two arrived at the front of the mansion. It was completely dark.

"They know we're coming," Sain said quietly.

"How can you tell?" Marisa asked.

"There's a sniper in the top window on the right half of the house," Sain said.

"You can see that?"

"You can't?"

"Whatever, have you got him, or should I?" Marisa asked.

"I got 'em. You have your bullet proof vest on, correct?"

"You think I'm an idiot?"

"I wouldn't want to see a beautiful shining light such as yourself have its power cut."

"…That was pretty bad," Marisa said.

"Well, you said you weren't available. Call this practice. I can try out new lines," Sain said cheerfully.

Marisa rolled her eyes, only it was too dark out to see her do that, "Why hasn't that sniper shot at us?"

"Probably because he's a failure at life. Or he's sleeping," Sain said, squinting at the spot. "I suspect the latter."

"If he were sleeping, then he wouldn't have known we were coming," Marisa argued.

Sain chuckled softly, "Enough chit chat. Shall we?"

Marisa cocked her rifle. Sain did the same with his shot guns.

And they split up.

Marisa headed towards the garage. That was her point of entry. Too bad the garage was closed.

And like every WIA agent would do, Marisa pulled out a grenade and threw it at the door of the garage.

Silence…

_Boom!_

Marisa walked into the garage as if nothing had happened and it was open the entire time.

As she walked into the garage, a light turned on. A motion sensor of some sort, she surmised.

But what really got her attention, was how it was completely empty.

Except for the four Fang members playing poker at a lamp lit table.

Marisa almost burst out laughing at their faces.

But instead she brought the rifle up and killed two of them immediately before they responded.

The two remaining men flipped the table expertly and got behind it, taking cover.

Marisa smirked as she fired at the table twice. It was a card table, and therefore not thick at all. The bullets went straight through and Marisa could hear the screams of the two men as they died.

The woman walked towards the door that led into the house itself. She opened it and walked in.

* * *

8305 Valor Street: Roof   
Sain Bond

Sain scaled the roof immediately after he heard the explosion. The roof was surprisingly empty. Slightly perturbed, Sain made his way to where to sniper was taking cover.

The agent took a pistol and pointed it at the man's head, "Get up."

The body next to the rifle didn't move. Sain reached down to grab its shoulder.

It was a dummy.

Sain blinked, and jumped backward furiously as a shot rang out.

"So they sent their best after us. I figured," a low voice said. Sain turned his head to Jaffar pointing a pistol at him.

"I am known for my skill," Sain said, stowing his pistol and taking both his shotguns and pointing them at Jaffar.

The assassin didn't do anything as he stood stoically, waiting for Sain's move.

Sain fired both the shotguns. One shot missed, and the other hit Jaffar.

The assassin was thrown backward onto his back.

Sain dropped the shotguns and took his pistol and began to walk toward Jaffar's body.

Before he was halfway there, Jaffar leapt up from his position and fired a shot at Sain.

Luckily, it hit Sain's gun. Unluckily, it hit Sain's gun.

The pistol flew from his hand and hit the ground elsewhere on the roof.

Jaffar dropped his gun and tackled Sain.

The agent felt his back hit the ground, or rather, the roof. Jaffar wrapped his hands around Sain's neck.

"It's always more of a challenge without guns," Jaffar whispered as he began to strangle the agent.

* * *

8305 Valor Street   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa used her last shot on the Fang who hadn't quite seemed to have died yet.

The agent stood inside a ballroom. It was elegant, as if it were frequented by many during parties.

Although now it was riddled with blood and seventeen dead men and women.

So it was still pretty if someone were into that.

The sounds of hands clapping rang through the air, "Brava, brava."

Marisa turned on the spot and aimed her rifle at the newcomer. It was her only weapon with ammo left. That and a grenade.

Ephidel, leader of the Black Fang strolled into the room, "I suppose I'll need some new men now."

"I suppose you will," Marisa said calmly, despite her exhaustion. She had pushed herself to her limit, and her arm was beyond useless. Discreetly, she pulled the pin off the grenade.

Ephidel saw it though and bolted from the room as Marisa chucked it at him.

* * *

8305 Valor Street   
Sain Bond

Sain tried to throw a punch into Jaffar's face. The assassin, while maintaining his grip on Sain's neck with one hand, blocked the punch with his other arm.

Then, as if Naga herself had intervened, there was an explosion that blew out part of the roof about twenty feet from them.

As trained as he was, Jaffar couldn't help but look. Sain grabbed Jaffar's hand that was holding his neck and ripped it from Sain's neck. Jaffar jumped to his feet, but stumbled slightly.

It would prove to be his downfall.

Sain took his pistol and pointed it at Jaffar's head, not his bulletproof vested chest and said, "This is what you get for trying to kill a lady."

And he fired.

* * *

8305 Valor Street   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa got behind a wall and waited for the explosion to clear. When it did, she got out from behind the wall (Or what was left of it) and walked toward the body of Ephidel.

He was still alive.

Marisa cocked her rifle and pointed it at Ephidel and said, "Where is Lloyd." It wasn't a question.

Ephidel coughed, he was really beat up, "…Gone."

"What?" growled Marisa fiercely as she pointed the gun closer to Ephidel.

"He ran. Damn coward," Ephidel said.

Marisa howled with rage as she shot the man.

* * *

8305 Valor Street   
Matthew Brooks

Three squad cars pulled up outside of the mansion. Matthew and Stahl got out of one, Legault, Heather and Mia out of another and Gregor out of his own.

They approached the mansion warily, with guns out.

And two people stepped outside through the front door.

"Freeze!" Gregor shouted. "Gregor commands you to freeze like deer in the headlights!"

The woman of the two just kept walking. The better dressed man walked up to the six police officers and said, "Hello there, citizens."

All six pistols were trained on the man's head. Though Matthew kept a wary eye on the pink haired woman.

"The name's Bond. Sain Bond," spoke the man. "I'm guessing Sigurd called you?"

"How do you know that?" said Stahl, his eyes narrowing.

"Family friend. Point is, we were never here. You six valiantly stormed the Black Fang base at great personal risk in hopes of clearing your associate's name. You left none alive and found this," Bond took a flashdrive from his pocket and tossed it to Heather. The woman caught it out of reflex.

"Who are you?" said Legault curiously.

"Ylissean Intelligence Association," Bond said as the two walked away. "And you never heard me say that."

* * *

Ylissean Central Hospital   
Cath Faraday

Cath opened the door silently, staring down the hallway. The emergency lights were on, but they were only so bright.

Shadows danced along the halls as one of the lights flickered briefly. Cath shivered.

"Get a hold of yourself," Cath whispered to herself. "You were a damn WIA agent. You're better than this."

With some newfound confidence, Cath left the room. Reaching to her belt, she pulled out a knife. The Thief preferred them to guns. Guns were noisy, guns missed. Knives were quiet. And Cath never missed.

The orange haired woman snuck to the nearest staircase. Cath figured elevators wouldn't be working, and even if they were, too noisy.

Like a cat, Cath lithely stepped down the stairs. Her target, the electrical room, was only a mere floor down.

But as she looked out of the stairwell doorway, she ducked her head back in.

Rolf Wright was standing by the electrical room's door, a rifle in his hand.

Normally, Cath could sneak up on him and get a lucky shot to the neck. But with his back to a wall, Rolf had an excellent vantage point. He could see both ways down the hall and kill any thing that approached.

Cath took cover behind the door as she waited for the opportune moment.

* * *

Ylissean Central Hospital   
Hector Asten

"You mean we have to fight off assassins with  _one_ pistol!?" Hector whisper shouted.

Stefan nodded, "Not my fault. I was a bit too concerned about the Exalt to grab a weapon."

"'An agent is never disarmed,'" Hector quoted with a scowl. "You know Colby personally and you still haven't accepted that as law?"

"You're not even part of the WIA, shut up," Stefan growled as he cracked his knuckles.

"I used to be," Hector said firmly. "You take the gun. An agent is a weapon, I don't need it."

Stefan cocked the gun, "Bullets?"

"I don't have any reloads. Those six are all you've got," Hector said as he headed for the door.

Stefan took cover somewhere. Hector didn't notice, and Hector didn't care. He had a job to do.

The giant man walked into the hallway with no worry. Running a hand through his hair, he tried to remember a layout of the building. He'd been here for a job ages ago.

Hector failed to remember. Not that that surprised him.

So Hector was faced with a choice that had faced many, many people throughout history.

Go right or left.

The agent went left. It was always the left path.

* * *

Ylissean Central Hospital   
Cath Faraday

Cath took another peek. The short green haired man still stood diligently like she assumed he was supposed to.

The orange haired woman pulled out a pistol. She wasn't that great with guns, but it seemed like her only choice.

Leaning up against the door, she was able to see a thin line of sight directly at Rolf. As quietly as Cath could, she pulled the hammer back and took aim.

Not too far away, the sound of a metal thing hitting the floor echoed throughout the hallway.

Rolf and faced the other way in less than a second. He stared down the hallway for several long seconds before slowly beginning to walk towards the noise.

Cath saw her chance and took it. She left her hiding spot and began to slowly creep to the electricity room door as Rolf walked the other way.

Cath kept the gun trained on Rolf's back, in case he were to turn suddenly. But the green haired man kept walking, looking for the source of the noise.

Cath gripped the handle of the door and silently opened it. No noise was emitted. Opening it, she slunk into the darkness of the room and quietly closed the door.

The agent swore softly. There was no light.

The Thief grabbed her cellphone out her pocket. It wasn't technically hers, but the person she lifted it from wouldn't notice. Actually, they probably would. It  _was_ a nice phone.

Cath flipped it open and used the light to help with her search.

It didn't take long. Cath found the master switch. Thankfully, it was merely turned off. All Cath had to do was flip it.

And that would alert Rolf immediately if he was back at his post.

Cath tucked the gun in the back of her pants and took out the knife. Quickly searching the room, she located something that would work for her plan: a screw.

Grasping it tightly, she took a deep breath. Then she threw it at the door.

_Clink!_

Silence…

Then the door burst open! Rolf stood in the doorway, his rifle pointed right at Cath. He smirked.

Cath flicked the master switch.

The light in the room flashed on. It startled Rolf, causing him to blink several times due to being blinded for several seconds.

Cath jumped at him, half silently and half with the speed of lightning. She took the knife and slashed at his neck.

She didn't miss.

* * *

Ylissean Central Hospital   
Hector Asten

Hector wasn't doing too well. In the darkness, he'd knocked a metal spoon on the ground in the kitchen. The sound had been painfully loud, and now Hector hid in one of the large cabinets, waiting to see if anyone would come to investigate.

He waited there for about a minute before getting impatient and leaving his cover. No one was coming, so Hector assumed he's gotten lucky.

Hector was wrong.

Sneaking around was not Hector's strong suit. So when the tall, blue haired man stepped out into the hallway and was greeted by Boyd Wright, he did what was most natural for him.

Hector punched Boyd in the face with all the power he could muster.

There was an audible breaking noise that came after Hector's fist connected with Boyd's face. The assassin fell to the ground, dazed. Hector was surprised the man didn't scream out.

With a brief moment of thought, Hector appreciated how out of the three, it was Boyd he'd come across. Rolf and Oscar were much faster and would have shot Hector before he moved. But Boyd was the basher, and good at bashing and not reacting.

Hector was just like him, just a bit faster it seemed.

The agent grabbed Boyd and held him up by his neck. The green haired man looked at Hector, his eyes not really seeing the man.

"Drop. My. Brother," a voice came from Hector's right.

The agent moved with a speed that surprised himself. He quickly wrapped Boyd in a choke hold and held him in front of his body. When Hector looked at his assailant, he made eye contact with Oscar Wright pointing a gun at him.

"No," said Hector. It probably wasn't the smartest thing to say.

Oscar's kind looking face contorted as he clearly began to the hand motion of shooting.

"Hold it," spoke a familiar voice.

Oscar turned on the spot and was met with a gun aimed at him by Stefan Gerrard.

Oscar reached to his belt very quickly and pulled a gun out and pointed it at Hector, "Seems like we're at a stalemate."

"Indeed," Stefan commented. Hector could tell the green haired man was in deep concentration though.

Then the lights flashed on.

Hector blinked with surprise. He could guess he wasn't the only one who did.

A gunshot rang out.

Hector had no idea who fired, but at the sound the agent tightened his arm very quickly. A loud snap was heard as Boyd's neck was broken.

The blue haired man dropped the body and it landed on the ground in a thump. His vision returned and he saw a green haired man standing in front of him.

"There," said Stefan. "I only used one bullet." The Director handed the gun back to Hector. The large man wordlessly accepted it.

"Go check on your woman," Hector said. "I'll find Cath."

"Don't call the Exalt 'my woman,'" Stefan said.

"I just did," Hector said and walked away.

* * *

YIA Headquarters   
Leila Gryfflet

"Here are your things," Sigurd said, handing Leila her badge and wallet.

"Thanks," said the purple haired woman.

Sigurd directed her to the front of the plumbing store, "I suppose it goes without mentioning, but don't mention this location to anyone."

"Of course," Leila said.

"And…" Sigurd began and trailed off. Leila tapped her foot and Sigurd regained his train of thought, "And if the YIA should ever need the police's cooperation, can I count on you?"

"Why would spies need the YPD?" asked Leila curiously.

Sigurd scratched his chin, "I…There's a storm coming Detective. Someone very dangerous is about to make his final play. I only hope we won't need your help. I only hope we can handle it on our own."

Sigurd left Leila with that cryptic reply. The Detective walked out of the store and left to track down a taxi.

* * *

The Shot Through The Heart Job  
Mission:  **Accomplished**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's funny because it's the Wright Brothers


	22. The Back In Town Job: Part I

Job #9: Back In Town

Part I

Ylisstol Maximum Security Prison: Cell 10   
?

A loud noise jolted the man awake. He blinked rapidly, trying to home in on the noise.

Footsteps.

The man glanced up and looked through the bars of his cell. The guard outside didn't seem to have noticed anything.

He stood up from his sitting position and stretched. The guard, Roy, eyed him carefully. The prisoner had given the guards trouble in the past.

And because of that, he didn't see the man creep up behind him and jab a switchblade into his neck.

"Kellam Anderson," said the man inside the cell as Roy's body fell to the ground. "I wasn't expecting you."

"Sothe Walker," said the assassin. "I was hoping I'd never have to see your pathetic face again."

"So why are you here?" said the green haired man, with a slight grin of triumph as Kellam unlocked the door.

"Sterling needs all hands on deck. And somehow, that includes you," Kellam rolled his eyes as Sothe walked out of the cell.

"Miriel's just down the hall, does that include her?" Sothe said.

Kellam reached down to Roy's body and pulled the knife from his neck and cleaned it off, "Unfortunately, yes."

* * *

Ylisstol News Center   
Noah Rogers

"You're on in three…two…one!" said Ephraim.

Noah smiled at the camera as he watched the prompter carefully, "Good evening, Ylisstol. Tonight, we have breaking news, and not to mention good news! In the early hours of the morning, a police team raided a mansion that turned out to be the Headquarters of the notorious Black Fang. Here, they found proof that the man behind the assassination attempt was Jaffar Beauregard, an infamous assassin. Tonight, we have Detective Inspector Stahl Donivore here with us."

Noah turned in his chair to the man, "So Detective, as leader of the team, could you tell us what happened early this morning?"

Stahl smiled, "Of course, Mr. Rogers. Late last night, we received a phone call alerting us about a disturbance at the location. We didn't have any idea that it was in any way related to the assassination attempt."

"So you and your team went in alone?" Noah clarified.

"Almost. Myself, Legault Adair, Heather Starr, Matthew Brooks, Mia Meridas and Police Chief Gregor Marshall. Our friend and fellow Detective, Leila Gryfflet, wasn't with us."

"And how was that, having a member of the YPD under suspicion of the crime?"

"It motivated us. The entirety of the YPD knew that Leila would never commit such a crime. And she was a personal friend to many of us. There wasn't a person who wasn't working their butt off to find the real culprit," Stahl said.

"And I suppose you worked your butt off too. Storming the base of the nefarious Black Fang couldn't have been easy, right?" Noah questioned.

Stahl laughed, "No, no it wasn't. I have no idea how we made it in there and out alive."

Noah laughed along with Stahl, "Indeed!" Noah turned back towards the camera, "Detective Stahl and Chief of Police Gregor Marshall with both be giving interviews tonight. Join us tonight at eight o'clock to find out what really happened."

* * *

Ylisstol: Outskirts   
Eirika Dawson

Eirika was in trouble.

She had just managed to escape from Ylisstol's prison. How she had done it, she hadn't figured that out. Though as she was walking down sketchy streets in an effort to hide better, she passed a store with a TV in the glass window.

Two terrorists, Sothe Walker and Miriel Avarige had escaped from the prison she had been in.

Perhaps they had been the ones to cut the power that had let her escape. Whatever the cause had been, the power had been cut and Eirika had slipped out.

"Don't you know it's dangerous for women to be out this late at night?" said a voice behind her.

Eirika spun on the spot and glared at the person who had spoken. A tall man leaned against a wall smoking.

"What's it to you?" she said, wishing she had some means to protect herself.

"I think," he said, blowing a puff of smoke, "that it is especially dangerous if that woman is a known criminal."

Eirika froze.

"Relax," said the man. "My name is Astol. I was the one who cut the power, letting you escape. Call it a test to see which inmates were worthy."

"Worthy of what?" Eirika said, backing away slightly.

"A job offer. Call this an interview. There's a man, named Sterling, who needs operatives for the game he's running. I can't tell you anything until you agree, but are you in?"

"What's in it for me?" Eirika asked.

"Clean record. Money. You name it," said Astol.

Eirika thought about it. Right now, there wasn't anything she could do. She'd be caught. Sure, she was smart, but she wasn't privy to underworld secrets that would help her hide from law enforcement.

"I'm in," she said.

* * *

Beaches of Carrion Isle   
?

He sighed, taking in the sunlight. The seagulls were cawing, the sun was shining and the waves washing up on shore, only to retreat back to the water before he could feel them touch his exposed feet.

And then his phone rang.

"Who the hell…?" muttered the man as he reached for the cellphone. No one should even have this number. He was dead after all.

"Hello?" he said. Even if it was a strange occurrence, he couldn't help but be curious.

" _Mr. Fletcher,"_  said a familiar voice on the other end.

Colm Fletcher bolted upright, his now wife Neimi looked at him in bewilderment.

"Why are you calling me?" Colm asked.

" _I'm calling in a favor. I need you one last time,"_ Stefan Gerrard said.

"Give me one good reason why?" Colm said angrily.

" _I can give you three. Robin Sterling has the Rabbit's Foot, you owe us, and we found the guy who helped you save Neimi,"_ Stefan said.

"That masked guy? Who is he?"

" _He's Erk Ivalice. And he betrayed us to throw in with Sterling,"_ Stefan said.

"Shit…the Erk? The Hacker?"

" _The very same. Are you in?"_ Stefan asked.

Colm paused for a moment, and then said, "Yes."

" _I'll text you the details,"_ Stefan said before hanging up.

"What was that about?" Neimi asked quietly.

Colm sighed, "I owe some people from back in the old days. They need me for a quick job. It won't take very long."

Neimi began to tear up, "You're leaving me?"

Colm hugged her, "Only for a little. I'll be back, I swear."

Neimi dried her eyes, "Okay. I trust you."

Colm kissed her and pulled out his phone, examining the details Stefan had sent him.

He frowned briefly, and left the beach.

* * *

YIA Headquarters   
Stefan Gerrard

"Colm Fletcher is in," said Stefan.

"Good to hear," said Sigurd, filing through some papers on the desk. "With your permission, there are a few more names I'm going to go investigate. Sleeper Agents, disavowed, freelancers…"

"A fine idea," Stefan said. "I'll take our available agents and assemble some teams from them. Then we'll use this intel you uncovered and see if it's worth anything."

"I think it will be, Stef. Think about it, it would make sense," Sigurd said.

"That Sterling's base of operations this entire ordeal has been underneath Castle Ylisse? It's doubtful, since your proof is seismic activity and some complaints about strange noises. Those could be anything."

"True, but we might as well check," Sigurd shrugged.

* * *

?   
Erk Ivalice

"So what do you have for me?" Sterling asked Erk as he sat down from across him.

"I've got a plan. I know how you like multiple plans," Erk said, turning his laptop so Sterling could see it.

"What am I looking at?" Sterling asked.

"I have hacked into Ylissean Military servers and obtained the launch codes for every nuclear missile in the country," Erk said.

Sterling's eyes widened, "You're joking."

"No," Erk said, allowing a grin to show.

"I'll be damned. I'm glad I never put you on that mission we talked about," Sterling said.

"You mean me being a mole in the YIA? I concur. I wish I hadn't saved that Colm Fletcher though," Erk said.

"That was when we were still discussing the possibility of the plan. Had you gone through with it, it would have looked very good for your story," Sterling said. "So what's the rest of your plan?"

"Well, for it to work, I need to be inside the YIA…"

* * *

Plegia City   
Sigurd Di'Arganan

Sigurd looked up at the apartment complex. Checking the address to make sure he had it right, he walked into the building.

Walking up the stairs, he hummed a merry tune as he went up to the floor he was supposed to meet her at.

But as Sigurd left the stairwell, a man began to charge at him!

Sigurd instinctually leapt into action. He threw a punch at the man who didn't even try to block it. The man fell to the ground, dazed.

"Thanks!" shouted a woman as she ran up to him, slightly out of breath. "He somehow slipped from my grasp."

"Mobster?" Sigurd asked, curiously.

"No, informant. He didn't like my questions," said the blue haired woman.

"It's annoying when they get like that," Sigurd said. "But that shouldn't be a problem for the great Lucia Devereau."

Lucia rolled her eyes, "Don't flatter me. It was bothersome enough with Virion a few months ago."

Sigurd laughed, "I can understand that. Are you busy this next month?"

"Sigurd Di'Arganan, are you asking me out on a date where we topple an enemy crime syndicate?" Lucia said with a smile.

"Um…sure?"

"Good. I was already planning on showing up," Lucia said. She bent down to the man who was stirring, "Want to help me question this guy? I need to take care of him before I leave the city."

Sigurd bent over and helped her pick the man up, "Sounds fun."

* * *

Ylisstol: Outskirts   
Colby Arturian

"What do you mean two of my agents are dead!?" Colby said in a cold voice. Nearby, leaning on their car, Lon'qu cast Colby a slightly surprised look.

" _What I'm saying, is that Eliwood and Cecilia are dead,"_ Cath deadpanned.

"And whose fault is that!?" Colby screamed into the phone.

Cath was silent for a moment,  _"To be honest sir, it was mine. I had to leave the scene to go warn Stefan about something."_

"…" Colby was silent.

" _Also, I resign,"_ Cath said resolutely.

"Fine," Colby said, "I couldn't care less. A liability such as yourself, who gets  _two_ of my agents killed, doesn't deserve to be in the WIA."

"… _Sorry,"_ she said, before hanging up.

Colby growled as he flipped the phone shut. Levin cocked his head, questioning what just happened.

"Eliwood and Cecilia are dead. And Cath resigned," Colby said through gritted teeth. "Now we got work to do. Get in the car."

* * *

Ylisstol   
Priam Reeves

Priam poured himself a cup of coffee. He never felt right without his coffee in the morning.

The front door to his apartment slammed shut. Priam turned to see his wife walk through the door, looking quite tired.

"Late night?" he asked.

"Definitely," Ishtar said. "And I've got news. Good and bad."

Priam took a sip of his coffee, "Listening."

"Bad news, they need you back. They need both of us to come back," Ishtar said, walking into the kitchen to grab her own dose of coffee.

"Huh," Priam said with another sip. "We can't very well go denying them, after all, they helped us out of a rather deep predicament."

Ishtar nodded with a slight smile, "That they did."

"And the good news?" Priam asked.

"Farina Dale says we get free reign on her weapon cache," Ishtar said.

Priam laughed, "Damn, she must be in a really good mood."

"She was. Her and that Mark are getting serious," Ishtar said.

Priam took another sip, "Hopefully they both make it out alive after this."

Ishtar nodded, "Me and you are going to be part of a strike team. Stef wouldn't tell me anything."

"Well we better get ready then. We know how impatient he gets."

* * *

Ylisstol Hospital   
Stefan Gerrard

Stefan sat down in the chair by Emmeryn's bed. She smiled and said, "Tough day?"

"Not as tough as these next couple are going to be," Stefan said. "You better keep in touch with the news, chances are you'll see me on it soon."

"I'm not sure that's a good thing," Emmeryn rolled her eyes.

"How're you doing?" Stefan asked, changing the subject.

"I'm in pain every so often, but it's nothing serious," Emmeryn said.

Stefan nodded approvingly, "Good to hear."

"Are you staying long?" Emmeryn asked.

"I'm afraid I can't," Stefan said. "I have to go have a word with the YPD. I'm going to need their cooperation soon."

"Stay a little longer at least?" Emmeryn asked.

"If you insist," Stefan said, smiling slightly.

* * *

YPD Precinct   
Heather Starr

Gregor interrupted their celebration, like usual.

The team was celebrating Leila's release. It wasn't a very crazy part, but it was a part none the less. And it had food. Lots of food.

And muffins.

Heather was more than annoyed when Gregor came in with actual work for them to do.

"Gregor is visited by top brass. They say Gregor and friends must call upon favors, yes?"

"Hang on, hang on," said Legault. "What do you mean?"

"Gregor is saying that the Director of the YIA came into Gregor's office today. Mr. Director wants Gregor to get Stahl's team to call in favors, yes?"

"What favors?" Mia asked. "Who owes us anything?"

"Haar," Heather suggested. "He said he owed us."

"That's really it," Stahl surmised.

"But what's this all about?" Leila asked.

Gregor was silent for a moment, "…Gregor hears from Mr. Director that he is conducting a raiding on Mr. Sterling's base."

Stahl and Legualt exchanged looks. "Alright," Stahl said. "I'll phone Haar up."

* * *

?   
?

The man woke yet again in darkness. He'd been in the room ever since he had been pulled out of the water. Thankfully, his captors had been slipping him food under the door.

Though eating in the dark was a hard task.

The man stood up and stretched, and then began his waking up routine, which consisted of as many pushups as he could do.

It wasn't like he had much else to do.

But right around number seventy nine, the door swung open. The man was blinded by light as the person who entered began to speak.

"I understand you're a man who…is good at getting things done," said the newcomer.

"Who are you?" the man blinded by the bright light asked.

"My name is Robin Sterling," said Robin.

"Sterling…I've heard that name before," said the man.

"I don't doubt it," said Sterling.

"Where am I?"

"Underneath Castle Ylisse," Sterling said.

The man's eyes began to adjust so he could see Sterling more clearly, "Why am I here?"

Sterling clapped his hands, "The million gold question. I've got you here because I have need of your skills."

"What skills? I'm just a humble man."

"Oh? I was under the impression that a man in your position wasn't a humble man," Sterling said.

The man in the darkness said nothing.

"If you think yourself so humble, tell me your name and occupation. We'll see if it sounds so humble out loud."

"Rath Sacae, Mafia Boss," growled the man. "Why would I ever work for you? A Sacaen never kneels to a non Sacaen."

"Because I have an incentive. A girl named Lyndis."


	23. The Back In Town Job: Part II

The Back In Town Job

Part II

Plegia City: Café   
Karla Sharp

"Aren't you biting off a bit more than you can chew?" Karla asked, twirling her hair in one hand.

"Perhaps," Sigurd said as he sipped his coffee. "Are you in?"

"I'll think about it," Karla said.

* * *

YIA Headquarters   
Stefan Gerrard

"Have you rounded your posse up?" Stefan asked, his hands folded in front of him on his desk.

Sigurd nodded, "I've got them and more. We'll break them up into groups. It would be impractical to have that many people focused on one task."

"And I suppose you have those groups created?" Stefan raised an eyebrow. "Doing my work for me? So thoughtful of you, it isn't even my birthday."

"Indeed," Sigurd said. "I have groups and missions for the respective groups."

"Well then. I suppose I'll send out the orders," Stefan said.

* * *

Rendezvous Point 1   
The Hideout   
Gaius Faraday

Gaius walked into the Hideout without even knocking on the door. When he got inside, Gaius wasn't surprised to see the rest of his team already there.

"I suppose we all got Green's phone call?" Gaius asked, already knowing the answer..

The other five nodded. "He said the leader of our team would know our mission," Anna said.

Gaius shrugged, "I don't know it."

The door swung open as a seventh member entered. Stefan smirked, "That's because I know our mission."

Gaius chuckled, "And…?"

"We're going to kill Robin Sterling," Stefan said. "And several other teams are going to deal with his other operatives. So who's ready to begin?"

* * *

Rendezvous Point 2   
Ylisstol: Outskirts   
Colm Fletcher

Colm drove his car up to the coordinates that he had been given. It was an empty park, filled with various slides that children would play on.

Going down one of the slides at the moment was a woman Colm didn't recognize. He slowly walked over towards her and said, "Aren't you a bit too old for slides?"

The woman nodded, "Indeed. But it's strange how something can seem so frightening when one is small. And now it's pathetic."

"I guess it's a bit strange," Colm said.

"I'm Lucia, pleasure to meet you," said the blue haired woman as she held out her hand.

"Colm. I'm guessing you're part of my team then?"

Lucia nodded, "Do we have anyone else with us?"

"One more. He should be here soon," Colm said.

As if on cue, the two turned as a car pulled up. A man stepped out of the brown car.

"Long time no see, Canas," Colm called out to him.

Canas chuckled, adjusting his monocle, "Indeed. It has been a while."

Lucia introduced herself and asked, "What's our mission?"

"We're going to kill Astol," Colm said. "I'll fill you in along the way. I might have a plan."

* * *

Rendezvous Point 3   
YIA Parking Lot   
Colby Arturian

"This is a crap plan," Levin said.

"Shut up," Colby said. "Stef gave us our target. And I have a plan."

"So we're supposed to hunt down and kill Erk. I don't see how sitting in a car in this parking lot helps," Lon'qu said.

"You two are idiots," Colby said.

"Duck down!" Levin suddenly said.

Out of instinct, Colby ducked. Then it hit him what he was doing, "What the fuck was—"

"Sterling's men," Levin said.

Colby leaned up slightly and glanced out his window. Five vans full of people had pulled up and were unloading.

"Well that's an interesting development," Colby muttered, not even surprised.

* * *

Rendezvous Point 4   
Priam's House   
Priam Reeves

"At least it's a convenient place to meet," said Priam.

"Yes. It's a great idea to have a secret agent meeting where we're planning to murder someone in our living room," Ishtar muttered.

Sigurd shrugged, "I thought it was a fine idea."

Ishtar rolled her eyes, "You said we're killing someone. Who is it?"

"We're going to take down Tharja. I understand that you, Ishtar, know some intel about Tharja?" Sigurd asked.

Ishtar nodded. Sigurd continued, "I'll let you fill us in on the way. I have her current location. No point in waiting, let's go."

* * *

Rendezvous Point 5   
Castle Ylisse   
Mark Strife

"What I don't get, is why we're meeting here," Mark said.

Farina shrugged, "Stef didn't tell you?"

"He didn't say much of anything. He said the team leader would know what to do," Mark said, scratching his chin.

"I know what to do, that means I'm the team leader!" Farina cheered.

"And you didn't even have to pay for it," muttered Mark.

"What was that?"

"Oh, nothing."

"Anyway," Farina said. "We're going up against some idiots, Sothe and Miriel. Remember when Gaius told us what happened when he apprehended them? These guys are a joke, and that's why you're with me I guess."

"Well, they needed someone competent."

"That's why I'm here."

"Really? I doubt that."

"Shut up," said Farina.

"But back on topic, why Castle Ylisse?" Mark asked, curious.

"Know about the Castle's basement?" Farina asked.

"No," Mark replied in an almost bored voice.

"Neither does anyone else," winked Farina.

Typical Farina.

* * *

Rendezvous Point 6   
The Church of Naga   
Karla Sharp

"Why do we have to meet in a church?" muttered Fir, clearly annoyed. "I'm not even a believer."

"Because that's where we were ordered to go," Karla said in her serene voice.

The church was relatively empty. Just a few fools scattered around, muttering to themselves. Only one priest was present in the main hall of the church.

"Welcome," said Claude Trematir. "What can I help you two with?"

"Are you Claude?" asked Karla, somewhat bluntly.

"Indeed I am," Claude replied. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"The Director sent us. We're with you," said Karla.

"Ah," Claude replied. "In that case, if you'd follow me."

The two sisters followed the priest as he led them down several hallways in the church until they got to a secluded room.

"Meet Prince Chrom and Maribelle. They will be working alongside us. Both are from HBI," said Claude, gesturing to the two people in the room.

"Prince?" muttered Fir in disbelief. "They let a Prince take part in a mission?"

"What's our objective?" asked Karla.

"Smash and dash. We're going to take out Eirika Dawson, escaped prisoner that is working with Robin Sterling," Claude said.

"Sounds like an adventure," said Chrom.

* * *

Rendezvous Point 7   
Sain's Car   
Sain Bond

Sain had his car pulled up outside a gas station as he pumped fuel into his car.

He, Marisa, Hector and Cath had a dangerous mission. It was the four of them up against one of the big guns.

Kellam Anderson.

"Where's Kellam hiding out?" Hector asked.

Sain ran a hand through his hair, "Somewhere in northern Ylisse."

"That's  _all_ you know?" Cath asked in disbelief.

Sain, ignoring the gas pump's  _ding_ that his tank was full, got on one knee in front of Cath. "My fair maiden," began Sain, "worry not! For your hero, Super Sain, has the coordinates! And so long as you stay by my side, I shall not let any harm come to that pretty face of yours—"

Hector kicked Sain's leg that he knelt on, "Cut it out. We've got work to do."

Cath helped Sain up, "Hector, don't hurt my big strong hero. What if I need him out there?"

Sain's eyes lit up, "You mean that!?" That was probably the first time anyone had ever said that to him. Except maybe his mother.

Cath thought for a moment, "I haven't decided yet. I'll get back to you on that."

Sain held up a hand for Marisa to high-five. She grudgingly returned the gesture, making Sain the one to actually complete the high-five.

"We should get going. No point in waiting," Hector said, rolling his eyes at Sain's antics.

"Agreed," said Marisa.

As they got into their car and began to drive away, another car on the other side of the gas station began to follow them.

Inside the car, a man lit a cigarette expertly with one hand while driving.

Lloyd Reed touched his ear, pressing the com link further into his ear. "I'm on them," he said.

" _I'll be along shortly. Send me the coordinates when you have them,"_ said the voice on the other end.

"Copy that," said Lloyd.

* * *

YIA Headquarters   
Ike Holmes

"Sir, the strike team is ready," said Ike.

Erk nodded, "Send them in. There will likely be someone at the front desk of the front. Tell your men to kill whoever it is silently. The longer we can remain off the grid, the better."

Ike nodded and relayed the information to the other ten people.

The team, Ike in the front and Erk in the back, walked through the entrance doors.

Inside, there was a man at the desk talking to a customer, "And what happened next?"

The customer shook his head, "And he said to me, 'I ain't doin' nothin'!' Can you believe that!?" concluded the irate customer with a shake of his head, "What a thing to say! Nothin'!"

"Well Wil, no one's perfect," said the clerk.

"Even so Alec, surely that wasn't the only thing he could have said!" said Wil exasperatedly.

Ike held up his rifle and shot Wil right through the head.

In his defense, Alec did as well as he could have in the situation. He had his gun in his hand and was about to shoot before Ike gunned him down.

Erk walked in after the ten thugs were inside, "Messy. But nice work. There should be a button on the other side of the counter. Press it."

Ike vaulted over the counter and gave the other side a quick inspection. Within ten seconds, he located the blue button and pressed it.

In the back of the silent store, the faint noise of a door opening could be heard.

"Let's go," Erk said.

Ike led the way, rifle at the ready. Now Erk walked in the middle of the thugs, surrounded on all sides.

Once they got to the now open door, Erk walked inside first. On the wall was a retinal scanner. Erk began to hook up his computer, "They'll know we're coming now, so once I spring this door all hell is going to break loose." Erk hit several keys, "Get ready."

The door opened. Ike brought his rifle and braced his shoulder against the stock.

* * *

YIA Headquarters   
Micaiah Stark

"We don't have much time," whispered the white haired woman.

The three other men with her nodded. Leaf, Klein, Kyle and Micaiah were the only ones standing in the way of Sterling's men who had just killed Alec.

Not Stefan's finest hour of planning.

Micaiah ducked behind one of the desks in the room. The other three agents she was in charge of did the same, scattered throughout the room.

Micaiah heard the door open and footsteps echoed throughout the room.

"Clear," said a man's deep voice. The footsteps picked up in pace.

And they would have continued to the upper level, where the offices were located, if not Leaf's intervention.

Which included jumping out of cover and firing his gun twice, killing two of the twelve men.

But just as things seemed to be better for Micaiah's group, the tall giant of a man with blue hair gunned down Leaf. One shot, one kill.

Micaiah closed her eyes with regret. But the other two men were not so attached as Micaiah had been. Kyle was the first to spring out of hiding.

But the man who had killed Leaf was no fool. Leaf's attack had left him on guard, and when Kyle jumped up, the man killed Kyle before he could even fire once.

Klein had slightly more luck. He didn't jump up as the other two had done, but had peeked above his desk and emptied an entire clip before the man killed the YIA agent.

Micaiah's breath caught in her throat. Three people she had known for years were suddenly dead.

But she had to remain calm.

Just like she was trained to be. Emotions were something that could not be brought into the life of an agent.

Micaiah dove to the right, out from her cover. As she slid across the floor, she concentrated all her shots on the man whom had killed her friends.

Emotions had to be left behind. Except for revenge.

She scored a hit on the man's mid chest. Unfortunately, it wasn't a fatal shot.

She realized that when he shot her back, right through the right lung. Micaiah's last thought was wondering how the hell the man could have remained standing after her shot.

As she felt the blood begin to clog up her breathing, she saw, through blurred vision, the man standing above her.

"Nice shot," he said.

Micaiah's vision faded to black.

* * *

YPD Precinct: Conference Room   
Leila Gryfflet

"This can't be right," Stahl said, glancing at a computer screen.

"What?" asked Legault, curiously.

"We've been summoned. To Castle Ylisse," said Stahl.

"Who's we?" Mia asked.

"All of us," said an unfamiliar voice.

Leila turned her head to look at the doorway.

Haar Vard stood in the doorway with his wife, Jill and Edward. Gregor also stood there, albeit obscured from view. Though he squeezed through the three to the front.

"You is getting the email, yes?" said Gregor.

Stahl nodded, assuming that Gregor meant the Castle Ylisse one.

Gregor smirked, "Gregor and friends are going to the castle!"

"…Why?" Matthew asked.

"Why is Gregor surrounded by forgetful people?!" Gregor shouted. "Remember? Mr. Director is visiting Gregor and asked Gregor and friends for help?"

"Oh, right," Matthew said.

"Onward!" Greogr declared and marched out of the room.

"…zzz…" Haar was leaning against the wall asleep.

"And he's a world class thief?" Heather raised an eyebrow as she and the others followed Gregor.

* * *

Ylisstol: Postal Headquarters   
Karla Sharp

Karla opened the doors to Yisstol's main post office. Eirika Dawson was going to be there, and Karla group needed to silence her, as well as find out what she was receiving.

Chrom Caverly walked beside her. Surprisingly, he seemed more calm than Karla.

" _Maribelle just told me that what Dawson is here for isn't a package,"_ said Claude.  _"She's here to meet with an arms dealer. We need to grab the dealer as well."_

"What a fun to-do list," muttered Karla. Beside her, Chrom chuckled.

"No time like the present then?" Chrom said with a smile.

* * *

Castle Ylisse   
Farina Dale

"What kind of game are they playing?" Farina whispered into the com link.

" _No idea. But Sigurd's briefing says that Miriel and Sothe are going to bomb the castle. When better to do that than on a visiting day?"_ Mark said.

"True," Farina admitted.

" _In any case, we need to move quickly,"_ Mark said.  _"While Miriel is the brains of the two, Sothe is very adept at disguise."_

"Then you better get to work," smirked Farina.

* * *

YIA Headquarters Parking Lot   
Colby Arturian

"They haven't come out," Lon'qu said.

"I can see that," growled Colby.

"So why haven't we gone in?" asked Lon'qu, annoyed.

Colby shook his head, "It's part of the plan. But first I want Erk to show his hand."

"I'm…being hacked," Levin said, dumbfounded.

"What?" Colby said in a single hard syllable.

Levin turned his computer toward Colby. There was a loading screen on Levin's laptop. But before Colby could ask what was going on, the screen changed.

It became a video feed. And Erk's face appeared.

" _Ladies and gentlemen, I bid you a fine afternoon,"_  said Erk.  _"But I'm afraid it shall not be so fine for long."_

"What is he doing?" Lon'qu muttered, loud enough so his companions could hear.

" _Did you know,"_  Erk continued,  _"that there are thirteen nuclear missiles with the city Ylisstol itself? And do you know what a hacker like that could do if he got a hold on Ylisse's nuclear codes?"_

"That explains his raid we saw," said Colby grimly.

" _My demands are simple. Deliver to me the Queen, along with ten billion gold, and I will walk away,"_ Erk said with a smirk.  _"If you do not comply…well…allow me to detail what will happen. I will detonate one of the missiles. You, the citizens of Ylisstol, will see what the destruction is truly like of a nuclear weapon. And should you still not comply, then I shall detonate the rest. And if any of you still live…there won't be anywhere to go._

" _You have one hour,"_ Erk said.  _"I expect to see the Exalt outside the doors of Castle Ylisse. One of my operatives will pick her up. I hope you make the right choice, Ylisse."_

The screen went black.

"Shit," Levin said.

Colby chuckled.

"What?" Lon'qu growled angrily. "Millions are going to die, and you laugh!?"

Colby merely shook his head, "Ah, but I have a plan."


	24. The Back In Town Job: Part III: Finale

The Back In Town Job

Part III: Finale

Ylisstol: Postal Headquarters   
Karla Sharp

Karla walked through the metal detector without a sound. Behind her, Chrom followed suit.

Most wouldn't expect a metal detector is a post office, but it was a government building. Plus it was the headquarters. It probably looked fancy to the tax payers.

But the thing was an inconvenience more than anything. The only bit of metal they had managed to sneak through were their com links in their ears.

"We're in," Karla said, leading Chrom off to the side of the room out of the way of civilians.

" _Claude is in position. He's shadowing the arms dealer,"_ Maribelle said.

"Copy that," Chrom said. "Any sign of the prize?"

" _I've got a possibility,"_ Fir said.  _"Currently in pursuit."_

"Keep us posted," Chrom said.

Karla nodded, "I suppose this is our cue to split."

"Sounds about right," Chrom said. "Good luck."

"Good luck for me? You'll need it more than me," Karla said skeptically.

Chrom laughed and walked away toward his assigned target.

Karla headed in the opposite direction toward a door marked 'Employees Only.'

On the way to the door, she accidentally tripped into one of the guards that were between her and her target. The two of them fell onto their butts.

"Oh my god, I am so sorry!" Karla said, adopting a higher worried tone.

The guard stood up and immediately reached down to help her up, "The fault is mine. What's your name?"

"I'm Karla," said the woman.

"Well Karla, I have a lunch break coming up. Are you busy at all?" said the man. Karla quickly glanced at his name badge. Azel.

"I…am afraid I am," Karla said. "But! Here!"

She grabbed his arm and stole a pen from his pocket and wrote her number on his arm, "Call me."

Azel smiled, "Will do."

"Bye," Karla said with a smile.

Azel smiled and walked off. Karla almost felt bad for writing the number of a pizza place in Plegia City on his arm, but she didn't. And when she had grabbed his pen, she'd lifted his ID badge which doubled as a keycard for doors.

Score.

Karla continued to walk toward the door she originally been heading for. When she arrived at it, Karla inconspicuously swiped the keycard and walked into the room.

Unfortunately, it wasn't empty.

"Who are you?" asked the man who had been sitting in a chair until he jumped up at her arrival.

"Um…I may have gotten lost," Karla said, looking worried and putting a finger to her chin.

"Stupid locks," grumbled the man. "Never working right…" He walked over to the door presumably to open it.

And he would have, had Karla not thrown a punch directly at his neck. The man's eyes bulged as he stumbled back in shock. Karla kicked him in the stomach and the man doubled over.

And to finish it, she grabbed the man and flung him against the wall, knocking him out.

Karla smirked at her work and looked around the room. It was a storage room. A storage room for sensitive documents, and that was why the guard had been there.

He wasn't very good at his job, judging his current position.

Karla began to take off her shirt and pants. Once she was only in her underclothes, she began to strip the guard for his uniform.

Karla wasn't paying too much attention, otherwise she'd have heard the door open.

"Freeze," said a commanding voice.

"Shit," whispered Karla inaudibly.

Karla slowly began to stand up and turn around, still not fully clothed. In front of her was Azel.

"I see you found my badge," he said, annoyed.

_Double shit,_ thought Karla.

Karla took great care to make her next actions seem as if they were nervous mannerisms. She grabbed the left strap of her bra and pulled it up while saying, "Well…" Next, she shifted her weight from her right leg to the left while pulling one of the cups of her bra up to keep Azel's eyes off her legs.

It worked.

As soon as her hand began to leave her chest, Karla jumped forward slightly and kicked Azel in the stomach, much like the previous guard.

However, Azel wasn't as incompetent as the previous guard had been.

The kick connected, and Azel doubled over. But as Karla began her finisher, Azel caught her wrist as she brought it down in a chop. Irked, Karla used his iron tight grip against him and jerked her wrist back, along with Azel.

As the red head was flung by Karla, he tried to grab her. Azel only succeeded in grabbing Karla's bra and almost ripping it off.

"Pervert," she growled as she kicked him viciously in the head, rendering him unconscious.

Taking a deep breath, Karla began to get dressed in the man's uniform. Unfortunately, it'd be a tight fit since it was meant for a man. And that was why Karla had to forgo his undershirt, otherwise it would have seemed all too apparent that she wasn't wearing the proper uniform. And that would lead to questions.

" _Are you alright in there?"_ Maribelle asked.

"A bit of unexpected trouble." Karla said. "But I took care of it." She grunted as she buttoned the last button, certainly feeling how tight the uniform was.

" _You sound in pain,"_ Maribelle said, concerned.

"You try putting a man's uniform on with my chest," grumbled Karla.

Maribelle laughed over the com link. Karla rolled her eyes, "Get Fir in route. I'll need that pass she has."

" _Copy that."_

* * *

Postal Headquarters   
Chrom Caverly

A few minutes after leaving Karla, Chrom sat down on a bench. He watched the people pass by, as if Chrom were just a humble citizen.

Thank Naga he was only a Prince. As long as he kept his head down, Chrom wouldn't be recognized.

The Prince was broken out of his thoughts when Claude sat down next to him.

"Where's the arms dealer?" Chrom muttered, looking around nonchalantly.

"The fat one," Claude said. "His name is Oliver."

Chrom was about to ask which fat one, but then he saw Oliver. The man was as fat as a leviathan!

" _He's_ a dealer?" Chrom said, unable to keep the surprise from his voice.

Claude ignored Chrom's comment, "See where he's going?"

Chrom nodded. At the moment, Oliver was stepping through a door that led to the backroom of the post office. Where all the packages were sorted and shipped, either away or in.

"After you," Chrom said.

Claude stepped up, Chrom only a second behind him as they approached the door. Claude put his hand on the door and opened it—

"Hey!" shouted a guard.

A woman marched right up to them and said, " _What_ do you think you're doing?"

Claude mumbled an inaudible curse, "Ma'am, we were just—"

"I don't want your bullshit excuses!" said the woman shrilly.

"Miss? What exactly is the problem?" Chrom asked, looking directly at the woman's face.

"The problem is—" the woman made eye contact with him. Her mouth conformed to make an 'O.' "You're…"

"Miss, if you don't mind, we have very important business in the back room. It is imperative that we go there now," Chrom said kindly.

"But…" the woman began.

"Ma'am," Claude began, "would you deny your Prince?"

"No!" she said loudly. Chrom smiled and thanked her and the two agents walked through the door.

"Good improvisation," Claude complimented.

"I'm getting the hang of it," Chrom said.

In the backroom, people were constantly on the move. No one paid attention to Chrom or Claude.

"We're in," said Chrom. "Get Karla over here soon."

" _She's having some…fitting issues right now,"_ Maribelle said, a slight chuckle in her voice.

"What?" Claude asked, perplexed.

" _Nothing,"_ Maribelle said, brushing aside her comment.  _"She's in route. Once she meets with Fir, they'll both be on their way."_

* * *

Postal Headquarters   
Karla Sharp

Karla now walked in the direction Chrom had gone.

"On my way," Karla said. "ETA three minutes."

Due to the uniform she now wore, people stepped out of her way subconsciously. As busy as everyone was, they didn't seem to mind getting out of the way of a guard.

Who was actually going to kill someone, but that was beside the point.

Someone bumped into Karla. The tall woman face flashed with disgust before she realized it was Fir who had bumped into her.

And now she was holding an ID badge.

Not even looking back towards Fir, Karla walked on while inconspicuously attaching her ID badge to her uniform jacket. It had been forged, of course. Her name and face was on it, courtesy of Fir who wasn't bad with computers.

Fir had just been to the get a blank keycard from the security office upon which she printed the forged image. Maribelle had tried, but couldn't fake the key signature that had been needed.

Karla soon arrived at the door to the backroom. The guard near the door let her pass without a word.

_Perfect,_ Karla thought with a smile.

* * *

Postal Headquarters   
Fir Sharp

Fir had managed to slip ahead of her big sister. A bit of a personal achievement for her.

Not to mention she snuck past the guard by the backroom door without her noticing.

Today was totally her day.

According to Maribelle, Eirika and Oliver were meeting in the Employee Breakroom. A fine place to meet, in Fir's opinion. She mostly thought that because of the plan they had.

Unfortunately, Fir got the boring side of the plan.

Distracting.

Fir's eyes narrowed in on the Breakroom entrance. Outside, two men in black suits stood stoically. They were Eirika's men.

Fir walked past them, without even giving them a look. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw one of them break off and begin to follow her. It wasn't like Fir was in disguise or anything. She looked like a civilian.

In the backroom of a government building.

Suspicious enough.

Fir located her destination, a hallway that would give her cover to take care of her pursuer. The woman ducked into said hallway and reached into her purse, pulling out a syringe. She held it in the familiar way she always held a syringe.

She heard footsteps despite how loud the room was. Fir braced herself…

The man in black walked around the corner and his eyes widened. Fir didn't give him any time to react before she jabbed the syringe into his neck.

The man almost immediately went limp and Fir caught his body.

"Heavy bastard…" muttered Fir, irritated.

* * *

Postal Headquarters: Breakroom   
Eirika Dawson

Oliver sat down across from her. Eirika could feel the table shake as his set his elbows down on the table.

"Do you have it?" Eirika asked, not wanting to share pleasantries with the fat man.

"So rude," Oliver said, a hint of disgust on his face. "I don't  _need_ to help you."

"Can you risk not helping us? You know who I represent," Eirika said, her lips forming a thin line in contempt.

Oliver's face contorted in anger for a brief second, then turned into a neutral expression, "I have what you came for."

"You have the trigger?" Eirika asked.

Oliver said, "Indeed. This will let you use the Rabbit's Foot." Oliver took a briefcase from under his chair. He handed it to Eirika.

"The money is already in your account," Eirika said. "And if this isn't the real thing…"

"I know," Oliver said, shifting with discomfort. "He…really plans to use it, doesn't he?"

Eirika fixed Oliver with a look, "I'm just a messenger. And you aren't supposed to ask questions."

The door to the Breakroom opened, making both of them jump slightly. But not enough to make them seem suspicious.

A female guard with long hair walked in and cast them one glance. She clearly didn't care that they were there. Walking right to the coffee maker, the guard filled up a coffee mug. Once she was done, she left the room.

Eirika let a small breath out, unaware she had even been holding it.

"I'm leaving," Oliver said. "The money better be there."

Eirika rolled her eyes, "It's there, fat man."

Oliver nodded and left the room as fast as a fat man could walk.

Eirika sighed and stood up. Just as she was about to head to the door and leave, Eirika made a detour to the coffee maker. She had gotten up early, and could use a caffeine fix.

Filling up a mug, Eirika took it with her along with the briefcase.

She entered the busy backroom and began to head towards the door that would take her to the main area of the post office.

Then she realized both her guards were gone.

Calmly, Eirika took a long sip from her coffee. And then she resumed walking, albeit quite a bit faster.

Eirika left the backroom without any trouble, but her eyes were pealed like a hawk.

Her vision suddenly seemed…darker?

Eirika stopped walking and blinked several times. What was…?

A woman bumped into her. Eirika barely registered the action until she realized the briefcase had been taken out of her hand.

"Hey…!" Eirika said, though her voice seemed weak for some reason. Why was that?

Eirika turned around, trying to get a look at the woman who had knocked into her. But as she turned, her legs gave out.

It was at that moment, Eirika realized she was dying.

Poison.

"Of all…the ways…" Eirika said, as she faintly heard voices around her as her vision faded.

* * *

Postal Headquarters: Backroom   
Chrom Caverly

As opposed to Eirika, Oliver had chosen to leave out the back of the post office.

It was good news to Chrom and Claude, who would prefer not to deal with the hassle of a crowd when arresting Oliver.

Oliver reached the back door and conspicuously looked around himself, checking for people. But Chrom and Claude weren't idiots. They shadowed Oliver from a distance.

The fat man left through the door and the two agents quickened their pace and arrived at said door seconds later.

Chrom opened the door and dashed out into the alleyway, closely followed by Claude.

"Sheesh, you guys are slow," Fir said, a grin on her face. She stood over an unconscious Oliver.

"Did you knock him out?" Claude asked, surprised.

"Well, the bigger they are, the harder they fall. He did most of the work," Fir shrugged, but obviously pleased with herself. "Do we kill him?"

"No," said Karla, stepping into the alleyway from the door Claude and Chrom had come from. "I'm sure he's got all kinds of information that HBI can use."

"Any volunteers to carry him?" Fir asked.

"I'll do it," Karla said, walking over to the fat man. When she tried to lift him, he proved to be too fat.

"I'll help," Chrom said, and together the two of them lifted him, albeit struggling the whole way.

* * *

Castle Ylisse: Main Hall   
Mark Strife

"You sure this is a good plan?" Mark asked, uncertain,

" _Quit your whining. It wastes time, and time is money,"_ Farina said.  _"And it's a perfect plan."_

"Whatever," muttered Mark.

" _Get in position,"_ Farina ordered.

Mark walked to join the tour group that was leaving at the moment. Mark was the bait for Farina's plan.

Guess who decided that.

"Good afternoon," said the tour guide. "My name is Cuan, and I'll be your guide today. Would you all follow me, please?"

Mark followed the man while looking everywhere except at the things Cuan pointed out. The Grifter didn't like the feeling of being out in the open. Especially without his trenchcoat. Farina made him wear a suit.

Though she did say he looked good, so that was always fine with him.

Mark tore his head out of the clouds and got on guard. Cuan was leading the group into a side room after having explained all there was about the main hall, when there was a commotion at the entrance to the castle.

Police.

Mark turned around, as did many others, to see them. A whole team of police officers were walking into the castle and heading off in another direction.

They were going to take care of the castle basement's…rat problem.

And like typical agents, Mark and Farina used this to their advantage.

Mark began to scan the faces that had come to see why police were high. Sothe or Miriel would certainly be there to see what the fuss was about.

The agent's eyes fluttered over a multitude of faces.

Nothing…

Nothing…

Nothing…

There.

"Got him," Mark said. Sothe stood about thirty feet from him.

" _Where?"_ Farina immediately said.

"Your eleven o'clock," Mark said, already sifting through the crowd toward Sothe.

" _I see him."_

As Mark got within about ten feet, Sothe turned and met Mark's eyes.

Both of them froze and maintained eye contact for a few seconds.

Then Sothe made a heel-face turn and began to run for it.

"Shit," swore Mark, causing several people to look at him. He paid them no mind, and he didn't pay the people any mind who he pushed out of the way as he pursued Sothe.

Sothe had the advantage, since he had been on the outside of the crowd. He had had less people to deal with, unlike Mark.

"In pursuit," Mark said, as he pushed his way out of the last of the people around.

The agent thankfully didn't have far to run. He entered the next room, which was a ballroom.

In front of him was Sothe holding a gun to Cuan's neck.

* * *

Castle Ylisse: Second Floor   
Farina Dale

Farina got up from her vantage point on the second floor of the main hall. She had snuck up there, since the public was only allowed on the first floor. It was how she had managed to have her rifle set up for sniping. Guards guarded the stair cases, not the actual second floor. The royal family's guards started on the third floor.

Which was why Farina became distracted when she saw someone walking down a hallway in front of her.

Farina knew she should go help Mark, but Farina thought she saw a flash of red hair.

Miriel.

Grabbing her rifle, Farina began to chase after the woman.

She chased the figure through various halls until (By her calculations) they arrived at the direct center of the castle.

Ducking behind a wall, Farina remained unseen by the woman. Peeking out of her cover, Farina confirmed it was indeed Miriel.

And that the large pillar in the center of the room was wired with explosives.

"Oh shit," whispered Farina. That pillar served as a large factor that supported the castle. If it were blown to bits, a huge section of the castle would collapse from the explosion and chain reaction.

* * *

Castle Ylisse: Ballroom   
Mark Strife

Mark immediately cocked one of his handguns and pointed it at Sothe.

"I suppose it goes without saying what I'll do to him," Sothe called out to Mark.

"What makes you think I care? My orders are to end you," Mark called out.

The majority of Sothe's head was exposed. If Mark could get a good enough aim he might be able to hit Sothe's head. Mark had never been the best shot.

"You're bluffing. You're one of the 'good guys,' you won't let me shoot him," Sothe called out.

"If it meant stopping your plan to bomb this castle, then I would," Mark said, his face grim.

There some people watching the spectacle from safe places that gasped. Mark heard the sound of people screaming behind him and men and women began to rush out of the castle.

"This guy's going to bomb this place?" Cuan called out, his voiced laced with…determination?

"Quiet," Sothe said, but he couldn't stop Mark from nodding in response.

What unfolded next was one of the craziest things Mark had ever seen.

Cuan grabbed Sothe's hand that held a gun to his neck. The brown haired man pulled the man's hand so it pointed over the left side of Cuan's chest. The gun still pointed at Cuan.

Cuan grabbed the trigger and fired.

The bullet shot through Cuan and into Sothe, the former gasping in pain and the latter screaming.

Mark dashed forward and focused on Sothe. The man wouldn't die from that wound and he still had a gun.

_Bang!_

Mark took care of him.

The agent knelt down at Cuan's side. The man had his hand pressed over the bullet wound so the blood would stop leaking out of his body as quickly.

"Who the hell are you?" Mark asked, while dialing an ambulance.

"Undercover…cop," Cuan said quietly, coughing a few times.

"Great work there. That was insane," Mark said.

Cuan grinned slightly, "…I know."

* * *

Castle Ylisse: Center   
Farina Dale

Farina dove out of her hiding place and pointed her rifle at Miriel and shouted, "Freeze!"

Miriel flinched, but put her hands up and turned around slowly to get a good look at Farina. "You can't kill me, or else who will disable the bomb?" Miriel said, a triumphant smirk on her face.

"The bomb isn't armed," Farina countered.

"Yes it is," Miriel said, her expression turning slightly angry.

Farina laughed, "Liar. The countdown in the middle of the bomb isn't moving."

Miriel's eyes widened. There was a moment of silence before Miriel made a dive toward the bomb, presumably to arm it.

Farina didn't let her. She fired her rifle almost immediately after Miriel moved.

A shot through the heart.

Miriel collapsed to the floor, bleeding from her chest.

Farina flipped out her cellphone and called the police, "This is Agent Farina Dale. I need a bomb disposal crew on the second floor of Castle Ylisse… Alright, I'll hold."

* * *

Castle Ylisse: Basement   
Matthew Brooks

Matthew and the other eight walked down the stairs they had uncovered. According to the map the Director had sent them, the original design plans had a staircase leading to a basement.

But when they had gotten there, there was no staircase.

Naturally, Gregor decided that it was best to take a sledgehammer to the wall.

Surprisingly, it worked. Unsurprisingly, the guards had a fit. Having Legault there with his HBI badge was the only thing that saved them from getting massively delayed.

The basement was musty. It hadn't had air in a long time.

But as they crept deeper down the hallway at the base of the stairs, they began to see a light.

"How could there be light?" Haar asked the obvious. "Hasn't this basement been sealed up for some time?"

"Must be Sterling's men," Stahl said. "Guns out."

All nine of them pulled out their handguns and loaded them.

And they began to walk forward again.

The end of the strangely long hallway grew ever closer as they walked on. With each step the police and tag-alongs grew tenser.

Then, they arrived.

About five people were in the room full of computers. Doors lined the side of the room on both sides. Matthew recognized the man in the middle of the room.

"Holy shit," Matthew said, forgetting to remain silent. "You should be dead!"

Rath Sacae looked up from his computer screen and his eyes widened. One of the men on the side of the room fired a shot.

Chaos exploded all over the room.

And when the bullets ceased, all of Sterling's goons were down. Except Rath, who lay on the ground, three bullets in his chest. But still alive.

"Sh…it…," muttered Rath.

"Good thing we caught them by surprise," Heather commented.

Suddenly, one of the doors burst open and a man jumped out and fired a shot. It hit Edward, sending the man to the ground with a scream. But the brown haired man wasn't dead, he'd been hit in the thigh.

Then there was another gunshot. But it wasn't the YPD's. Nor the man who shot Edward.

"Sneaky little bastards," muttered the man who stood where. He turned to the policeforce. "Agent Strife. I work for the Director. Thanks for this."

"There'll be more," Stahl said, gesturing to the doors.

"I know. The rest of your team can take them. But you Agent Stahl Donivore, I have a proposition," Agent Strife said.

_Agent?_ thought Matthew curiously.

"What?" Stahl asked.

"We're going to help a few others take down Kellam Anderson. I know you're very knowledgeable about him. Care to join us?" Strife asked.

Stahl nodded, "Thanks." He turned to the rest of his people, "Follow Gregor's orders. He's in charge."

"Oi! Gregor is your boss!" Gregor said.

Stahl rolled his eyes and left with Strife.

"What was that about?" Leila asked, puzzled.

"I'll tell you later," said Legault.

Matthew raised his eyebrows, "Whatever. Let's get going."

They divided up and of course, Matthew and Leila paired up to take on of the four doors.

The two detectives stepped through the door into another room immediately. In the room, they found a woman unconscious and tied to a chair.

"Damn," Matthew said.

"You recognize her?" Leila asked.

"Karla Sharp told me about her. She was Rath's fiancée, the guy we just killed out there," Matthew explained.

"We'll have to get her home. She doesn't look like she came willingly," Leila said and set to work cutting her bonds.

* * *

YIA Parking Lot   
Colby Arturian

"Hack him," Colby ordered. "I want to see the look on his face."

Levin nodded and got to work, typing furiously at the keys on his keyboard.

"Lon'qu, grab the spare laptop and spread the word that Erk's message was a prank. It has been dealt with and there's no threat," Colby said.

"But there is a threat," Lon'qu said.

"I'm dealing with that," Colby said.

* * *

YIA Headquarters   
Ike Holmes

Ike stood, leaning on a wall with a hand over his wound. The bullet was far enough in that in blocked the blood from spurting out, but not far enough that it created too large of a wound.

No matter what, Ike still needed a hospital.

"Are you almost done?" Ike asked, a tremor of weakness passing through his voice.

"This is actually the safest place in Ylisstol right now. I'm not going to nuke myself," Erk said, irked.

Ike grunted. But he was ignored as a beeping sound came from Erk's laptop.

A video call.

Erk clicked 'Accept.'

A face appeared on the screen. A man smiling confidently.

"Arturian!" Erk exclaimed. "How the hell are you—"

"Nice threat you had there," Colby said. "But now that you've made your move, it's time to make mine."

"Is that so?" Erk asked, regaining his composure.

"Indeed," Colby said. "Remember that run in we had a few weeks ago? You had your laptop unsupervised for a few minutes."

Ike saw Erk's eyes widen, "You didn't..."

"How fast can you run?" Colby asked.

"SHIT!" Erk yelled as he jumped up from his chair. Ike heard a louder beep. It was the kind of beep that was the sound of trouble.

Erk's computer exploded, engulfing the entire room in blazing hot flames.


	25. The Endgame Job: Part I

Job #10: The Endgame

Part I

Castle Ylisse: Basement   
?

His eyes opened slightly. His vision was blurry, and he could barely see anything.

His hearing however, was unimpaired.

"Where's she go?" asked one of the detectives.

"Did someone let her leave?" asked another loudly.

"Gregor, did you do something stupid?" said a man through a yawn.

"Gregor did nothing! Gregor is not seeing anyone!" shouted a man with a strange accent.

_How am I…alive?_ Rath thought to himself. He distinctly remembered getting shot several times.

He moved slightly. Pain burst through his senses.

And there were the bullets.

Rath surmised that he was in shock. Thankfully due to that, his mind was dulling the pain.

"Stay still," a woman whispered.

The ex-mafia man tried to piece together who it was that spoke to him. Her voice definitely sounded familiar, but Rath was unable to grab the name.

"We got all we came for, let's go look to see if she's on the upper floor," said one of the policemen.

Rath heard the sound of footsteps walking away. He breathed a sigh of relief.

"That was close," said the woman next to him.

"Who…?" Rath managed to mutter.

"It's me, Lyn," she said. Darkness obscured her face, but Rath was able to recognize her voice now.

"I'm going to get you out of here," she said. "There's an outlet from this basement onto the streets. I've already called an ambulance. Think you can make it?"

Rath nodded very slightly. He felt Lyn pick him up.

Normally he would have given up. But that was not the Sacaen way, especially when there was a woman nearby.

* * *

Northern Ylisse: Rabbit's Foot Laboratory   
Astol

"You sure about that?" asked Astol with an annoyed voice.

" _We've lost the trigger,"_ Sterling said.  _"The backup plan is our only plan. You better find a spare."_

"Are you sure one is here?" Astol spoke, curiously.

"… _No. But any chance is better than no chance. Eirika fucked up, and now you're our chance at success,"_ Robin said.

"As long as I get paid, I don't care," Astol said, pulling his car up to the building.

" _And one more thing. Erk's dead,"_ Robin said, his voice filled with anger.

"Sucks for him," Astol said, his characteristic lack of empathy.

Robin said nothing. Astol could tell Sterling was angry. But the Thief didn't care. He was getting paid, and that was all he cared about.

" _They hacked Erk's computer. Chances are, they know where you are and they're coming to get you,"_ Robin said. Astol quickly grew angry, hearing the undertone in Sterling's voice. He hadn't warned him on purpose.

" _Let's see if you live up to your reputation,"_ Sterling said.

"I'll see you in hell," Astol snarled and hung up.

The Thief jumped out of his car while furiously slamming the door. Of course he hadn't been warned. He was just the hired hand.

Walking toward the building he had previously broken into some time ago, Astol continued fuming. If he got killed…well, then there'd be nothing he could do to Sterling.

Growling, he entered the building.

* * *

Rabbit's Foot Laboratory   
Colm Fletcher

"He's gone in," Colm said calmly.

" _Intriguing,"_ Canas said.  _"He's just walking straight into our trap."_

"Must have gotten bad news on the phone," Colm commented.

" _He did,"_ Lucia remarked.  _"He knows we're coming, just not that we're already here."_

"Positions," Colm said. The blue haired man was on the side of the building, searching for the best place to scale the wall.

* * *

Rabbit's Foot Laboratory   
Canas Lannister

Canas calmly walked around the room that had once held the Rabbit's Foot, searching for any clues as to where a trigger might be. He used the umbrella he carried to push aside various stacks of papers that had been left lying about.

"Maybe I should invest in surgery to fix my vision," Canas muttered aloud, as he cleaned his monocle for a third time that night.

"Maybe you should keep an eye on the door at all times," said a voice behind him. Astol.

"Perhaps I did," Canas suggested. "After all, the top side of having a monocle is that it is reflective."

"You saw my reflection in the glass," Astol realized.

"Very astute of you," Canas said. He turned around to face Astol.

Astol held two pistols that were trained on him. "How's it going to be, bookworm?" Astol asked.

"Tut tut," Canas shook his head. "Not very polite. As a wise man once said to me, 'Manners Maketh Man.'"

"I'm not here for a lecture," Astol growled. "I know you're YIA, and I know that you'll know where the trigger is, if it's here. Since you're clearly a bookworm, perhaps you should get onto that task."

Canas lightly shook his head, "I suppose I can teach you something else about monocles. Once you put one on…no one ever takes you seriously."

Canas flipped the umbrella in his hand so it was pointed as Astol. With a deft push, he unfurled the umbrella, still pointing at Astol.

Astol fired both his pistols. The bullets hit the umbrella head with force from the close quarters.

Bulletproof.

The agent allowed himself a small smirk, and clicked the trigger on the umbrella. Out of the tip of the umbrella fired a bullet.

Astol swore as he was hit in the lower chest. He began to fire rapidly, emptying his clips onto Canas' shield.

Canas merely smirked as Astol ducked out of the room, dodging the agent's next shot.

"He's on the move," Canas said, folding up the umbrella.

* * *

Rabbit's Foot Laboratory   
Lucia Devereau

Lucia ignored all the chatter she heard from Canas and Colm. The blue haired woman focused on the task in front of her.

Which consisted of a bomb with enough explosive power to engulf half of the building.

The hard part about her job was the trip wire. Every entrance to the room was wired. And if Lucia slipped and touched one of those wires…

Not very good.

* * *

Rabbit's Foot Laboratory   
Colm Fletcher

Colm peeked through the gap in the ventilation shaft and saw his target run ever so closer. Thankfully, Astol was too preoccupied with his wound to notice.

As the Thief arrived directly under Colm, the agent jumped down from his perch and tackled Astol.

"Fuckin—" Astol swore before Colm's foot connected with his mouth.

Unfortunately for the blue haired man, he landed awkwardly and bashed his head on the wall.

Not his most graceful moment.

As Colm began to regain his senses, he lost them again as Astol kicked  _him_ in the face.

"Payback's a bitch, huh!?" Astol shouted, not letting the pain get the better of his one liner.

Colm collapsed to the ground again, swearing quietly. He was thankful Astol hadn't just killed him. Either the man was a coward, or he  _really_ wanted to get out of there.

"Come now," a familiar voice said. "We haven't all day."

Colm looked up from his fallen position and saw Canas standing above him. "You look like a bonafide gentleman," Colm said with a cough.

"I suppose I do, don't I?" Canas said, allowing a laugh and smile while swinging his umbrella. "Now, let's go. He's likely going to make it to Lucia's position before long—"

_BOOOOOOOM!_

Silence…

"Shit."

It didn't matter who said it, because they both said it. Colm jumped up, completely snapped out of his stupor. Canas lead the way.

"Son of a bitch!"

This time it was Colm. When they arrived at the explosion sight, there was hardly a room left to recognize.

But they didn't need help figuring out who the two bodies were, despite their charred appearances.

* * *

Ylisstol Central Airport   
Sigurd Di'Arganan

"I'm going in," Sigurd said between sips of his water. He swung around in the bar and began to walk towards Tharja.

As the blue haired man walked, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a pair of glasses. After putting them on, the agent fumbled around in his other pocket for a rubber band and ponytailed his hair.

That, along with his casual appearance, would have to suffice for a disguise. Tharja knew Ishtar's appearance and Priam…wasn't very good with disguises.

"I'm in position," Sigurd breathed. "At your ready."

Almost as soon as he said it, Priam emerged from around the corner. He kept his head down, just like Sigurd had instructed. And he 'accidentally' knocked Tharja over.

Also like Sigurd had instructed.

"Are you alright?" Sigurd asked his target as Priam hurried away.

"I'm fine. Some people should watch where they walk," growled Tharja.

"Busy day for some, I guess," Sigurd shrugged. "Here, let me help you with that."

The agent bent down and picked up Tharja's suitcase (Not before planting a homing device in one of the side pockets). "What gate are you?" Sigurd asked.

"Thirteen," Tharja replied.

"Ha!" Sigurd exclaimed, "I'm at twelve. I'll walk with you."

The two unlikely companions walked through the masses of people towards their respective gates.

"Hope you have a nice flight," Sigurd said as he turned towards gate twelve. The agent gave her a slight smile, just for kicks.

"And you as well," Tharja replied and left in her direction.

Sigurd's flight was still thirty minutes from take-off. Not like he was going on it, but it gave him an alibi as to why he sat down on one of the various chairs near the gate.

"You're up," Sigurd said to the woman reading a newspaper next to him.

"I'm not blind," she replied, though not coldly.

"Just saying in case those comics were just too interesting for you to pay attention to the job," Sigurd said, pulling out his laptop.

Ishtar spared him a glare before folding up the paper and walking towards gate thirteen.

Sigurd chuckled to himself before unfolding his laptop.

* * *

Ylisstol Central Airport: Airplane   
Ishtar Reeves

Ishtar didn't like sunglasses. She never had. It always made the room darker, and harder to see in. Why would anyone wear sunglasses inside? Outside, she could understand. But indoors?

Though admittedly, she looked pretty badass.

When her boarding number was called, Ishtar proceeded towards the ticket scanner. He scanned the ticket, wished her a nice flight and called the next number in three seconds.

Someone must have been employee of the month.

Ishtar strutted down the jetway and into the plane. Tharja was already on the plane and sitting in the back, just as Sigurd had coordinated.

As she passed her husband three rows up from where Ishtar would sit, the agent nodded at Priam. Priam winked at her, but otherwise betrayed nothing.

Ishtar avoided Tharja's gaze just in case as she sat down in the same row, but other side of the plane from Tharja.

The back row was empty besides Tharja and Ishtar. Just as Sigurd had arranged. Everything was going to plan.

" _Ladies and gentlemen, the package is in the mail,"_ Sigurd said.

* * *

Ylisstol Central Airport   
Sigurd Di'Arganan

Sigurd took a sip from the coffee he bought from a shop nearby. It was cheap, and Sigurd needed caffeine. Everyone was happy.

Well, Tharja wouldn't be for long.

The agent pulled up the video file he had prepared. With a few quick keystrokes, he had the prepared email up as well. Attaching the video took longer. The clock saying three minutes.

Sigurd watched as the plane took off. Hopefully things would go well for his two compatriots. And Sigurd didn't see why things wouldn't. They might be playing the bad guy role at the moment, but why would that mean things wouldn't go well?

The agent's computer went  _ding!_

Sigurd hit send. Now he just had to wait while the other two did the heavy lifting.

* * *

Airplane   
Ishtar Reeves

Ishtar cast a discreet look at Tharja. She had just taken out her laptop. It was only a matter of time.

The mark pulled out some earbuds. Ishtar allowed herself a satisfied smirk. She loved it when things went to plan.

Tharja began to watch the video she had been sent. Ishtar stared at the timer on her watch.

Once roughly enough time had passed, Ishtar stood up. Tharja of course, didn't notice. Had Ishtar been in her position, she doubted she'd have noticed either.

But Sterling's operative did notice when Ishtar sat down beside her in the other seat.

"You've got questions," Ishtar prompted.

"Yeah. How the fuck did you get my daughter?!" Tharja snarled. She turned the computer towards Ishtar showing a young woman tied to a chair. The video was paused. But the rest of the video had been proving that it was indeed Tharja's daughter, Noire.

"Will you cooperate?" Ishtar asked.

"I don't have to deal with you," Tharja said, reaching up to the large red button above her seat. The one that called the flight attendant to one's seat.

"No need for that," Ishtar grabbed Tharja's hand. "I think we can resolve things ourselves. Plus I've got some hired muscle a few seats up. I really don't want him involved."

"I can take you and some other guy," Tharja muttered quietly.

"What if that other guy is Priam?" Ishtar grinned.

"…Fuck you," Tharja muttered, leaning back in defeat.

"Now here's how things will go," Ishtar said, removing her sunglasses. "You will reply to this email with the  _precise_ details on how to deactivate the Rabbit's Foot. Then, I shall make the call and release your daughter."

"And I'm just supposed to trust you?" Tharja said incredulously.

"Better us than Sterling. He's had Noire captive for the past five months. He just hadn't told you," Ishtar shrugged.

"You lie," accused Tharja.

Ishtar pulled out her cellphone and dialed a number quickly, "Hello…Celice? Yes, it's me. Put Noire on."

The agent watched Tharja from the corner of her eye, "Alright young lady, I'm going to put your mommy on. And you're going to tell you how long you've been kidnapped."

Ishtar held the phone to Tharja's ear, not relinquishing her hold on it.

"Noire…?" Tharja whispered. Ishtar was pleased to see the distress was real.

"Five…?" Tharja began. "Honey, don't worry. Everything's going to be alrigh—"

Ishtar hung up, "The email, if you please."

Tharja turned toward her computer numbly and began typing. She attached several files from her computer to the email. When she hit send, Ishtar touched her ear and asked, "Did you get that?"

" _I see it. Let's end this,"_ Sigurd replied.

Ishtar hit redial on her cellphone and said, "We're good Celice. Let her go."

The woman hung up and turned to Tharja, "And that's that. Thank you for your cooperation."

"You bitch," snarled Tharja.

"Now, now," Ishtar cautioned. "You should listen to what I have to say. Both Sterling's men and ours will be coming after you. The only difference is that ours won't look as hard. If you and your daughter pack up and head for Valm, it is unlikely you'll be caught."

Tharja glared at her. Ishtar stood up and sat back down in her original seat.

One long hour later, the plane landed. Tharja was the first one off, abandoning her luggage. Ishtar chuckled and waited patiently until she and Priam were the only two left. Then they calmly exited.

"You did well," Praim said with approval.

"I'm just glad we didn't have to kill her," Ishtar admitted. "She was just a scientist. Perhaps she didn't even join Sterling willingly."

"Who knows?" Priam shrugged. "But more importantly, we're stuck in Plegia City with nothing to do."

"I think I could think of something to do," Ishtar said slyly.

"We could spar," suggested Priam. "I know a guy who owns a gym around here. He could get us in for free."

"I was thinking of a…different kind of sparring," Ishtar said, a coy smirk dancing across her features.

"Huh…? Oh…OH!" Priam said, realization hitting him all at once.

Ishtar only laughed.

" _Just make sure to mute your coms, lovebirds. Some of us have actual work to do,"_ Sigurd said, though Ishtar could tell he was partially laughing.

* * *

Northern Ylisse: Sain's Car   
Sain Bond

"I've got some good news," Sain called back from the passenger seat of the car.

"Let's hear it," Hector said.

"Mark Strife and Farina are going to meet us. Their bringing along a detective too," Sain said.

"A detective? What the hell kind of good is a detective going to do?" Cath asked from the driver's seat.

"Ever heard of a 'Stahl Donivore?'" Sain asked as he checked his phone, making sure he got it right.

"Hang on," Hector said, pulling out his laptop. After a minute, he had results. "So this Donivore guy, he's a pretty popular guy. He and some of his buddies bagged the Sacaen Mafia. And as I check the YIA's database…he's HBI."

"Shit, really?" Sain said, surprised.

"Yep," Hector affirmed. "He was their leading man on Kellam Anderson. No wonder Mark's bringing him."

"We've got bigger problems," Marisa suddenly spoke up.

"Such as?" Cath asked, not taking her eyes off the road.

"The same car has been following us for the past thirty miles," Marisa said.

"We've barely taken any turns in thirty miles," Sain said. "Doesn't mean he's following us."

"He was also at the gas station, however long ago that was," Marisa argued.

"Well…damn," Cath muttered. "Can you ID him?"

"Lloyd Reed," Marisa said, without any hesitation. "Black Fang."

"Fuck," Sain said. "Think he's here for revenge?"

"Let's pull over," Hector suggested. "Sain and Marisa get out, I shoot him if he tries anything. Deal?"

"Sounds good to me," Sain said. He turned to Cath, "Pull over, if you will m'lady."

Cath rolled her eyes, but pulled the car over to the side of the road. Lloyd's car mirrored the move and came up almost directly behind their car.

Sain opened his door as he heard Hector lock and load. He and Marisa glanced at each other, nodded, and got out of the car.

Lloyd did the same. Except he came with his hands raised to the sky. Marisa pulled a pistol on him, no saying a word.

"I did what I had to," Lloyd said. "But before you judge me, wait five minutes. That's all I ask for. Give an old friend five more minutes."

"You murdered Renault," Marisa growled.

"Kellam Anderson murdered Renault," Lloyd countered.

Marisa shook her head, "You lured us there. You knew he was there, and let us walk into a trap."

"Five minutes, it's all I ask," Lloyd said. Sain was perfectly willing to give it to him. Lloyd had no escape, not with Marisa and Hector aiming at him. And probably Cath as well, Sain added in an afterthought.

But they didn't have to wait five minutes.

A motorcycle slammed on the breaks as he got closer to them. Sain estimated that whoever it was had to have been going at least twice the speed limit. And of course, Sain's only thought was that the person's ride was a damn good one.

The man drew closer. Sain could tell it was a man, due to his lack of certain…parts that women had that Sain considered himself an expert on.  _I'm never saying that out loud,_ Sain resolved. And no hair stuck out of the helmet he wore as well.

The motorcyclist drew to a stop alongside both of the cars. Marisa stared at the newcomer, but didn't shift her gun away from Lloyd.

The man reached up to his helmet and took it off.

"Miss me?" a gruff voice asked.

It was Renault.


	26. The Endgame Job: Part II

The Endgame Job

Part II

Northern Ylisse: Main Highway   
Marisa Beckett

"Son of my mother's whore!" Hector exclaimed, drawing looks from everyone except Marisa.

Marisa only had eyes for the man who'd just rode up on his motorcycle: Renault.

"How are you alive?" Marisa asked, blunt as ever.

Renault turned his attention to her, "Lloyd helped. He lured us into Anderson's trap yes, but he got me out after. Once you'd fried the charge that had been implanted in my head, I was still out from being shocked. As he told me, you were taken by the police. Lloyd merely used a defibrillator on me once you and the police were gone. Thankfully, it hadn't been too long."

"I was keeping watch the whole time," Lloyd spoke up. "I was waiting for the opportune moment jump in. And I hired a few thugs to distract the police, getting them out of there sooner."

"But why did you betray us in the first place?" Marisa said, her voice still cold.

Lloyd shook his head, "I was trying to protect a friend named Nino. It worked, and Kellam didn't kill her. But Nino got caught in a crossfire and still was killed none the less."

"And why did you take so long to get here?" Marisa rounded on Renault.

"You didn't need me. You had Sain Bond and Hector Asten with you. And that way I could do some work from the shadows with Lloyd," Renault said. "Like for example, do you know where Kellam Anderson is?"

"We have coordinates," Cath said.

"Kellam Anderson is at a top secret military base in northern Ylisse. He's arranged an escape plane for himself and Sterling. After they plant the Rabbit's Foot, they're going to fly the coup," Renault said.

"Has Sterling taken over the base?" Sain asked.

"Yes, we'll have to clear it out," Lloyd spoke up.

"Good thing we've got reinforcements on their way then," Hector said.

"Enough chat," Renault said. "We need to get moving. Taking down Kellam Anderson is imperative for us to succeed. And we still have a lot of ground to cover."

* * *

Southern Plegia   
Gaius Faraday

"I've got news," Stefan said from the passenger seat.

Gaius nodded from the driver's seat, "Let's hear it then."

"Astol is dead and Tharja is no longer a threat," Stefan said. "Bond, Hector and their team are almost at Kellam's location."

"And that means you can tell us the details of our mission, no?" Virion asked.

"Yeah," Stefan said absent mindedly. "…Sterling is holed up at an abandoned military base about fifty miles from where we are right now. He's got a mercenary terrorist group protecting him."

"And the Rabbit's Foot?" Frederick prompted.

"Useless. We got the trigger from Eirika, and Astol failed to recover another one, if there even was another. Robin may not know that yet," Stefan said thoughtfully.

"Do we have a plan?" Anna asked.

"No," Stefan commented calmly.

"…What?" Morgan muttered.

"We're going to shoot our way to Robin. There aren't too many terrorists from what our intel tells us. We should be able to manage."

"That's reassuring," groaned Morgan. Lissa laughed.

* * *

Southern Plegia: Abandoned Base   
Frederick Quinn

"Kill the lights," Stefan muttered as they approached under the cover of darkness. The abandoned base was right in front of them, only it no longer looked abandoned. Guards patrolled the walls, and lights were on everywhere.

"Everyone out," Stefan ordered. The team followed him to the back of the van. Stefan opened the back and began to hand out weapons to everyone—even Lissa.

"Virion, you know what to do," Stefan said. "Everyone else, follow me."

* * *

Abandoned Base: Exterior   
Virion Chandler

Virion climbed on top of the van and assembled his rifle. Doing it in the dark was no challenge.

He brought the infra-red scope up to his eye and began to watch the men and women on the walls.

" _Virion. Commence in three,"_ Stefan said.

"Three…" Virion cocked his rifle.

"Two…" Virion took aim at the guard nearest to him.

"One…" Virion tightened his finger on the trigger.

_Bang!_

The guard fell without a word. The other guards however, were not so quiet.

"Engage," Virion calmly said as he fired again, hitting another man square in the head.

Gunfire began. Except the Observer could tell they had no idea where he was.

_Bang!_

This time it was a female guard who lay dead with the other two.

"You're clear in the immediate area. Notify me when you press forward," Virion said.

* * *

Abandoned Base   
Frederick Quinn

When he got inside the base itself, Frederick split from the main group, as he was ordered.

The gunfire was all aimed at Stefan, because he had a machine gun. But he was only distracting them while Virion picked them off.

The base itself wasn't very big. In the middle of the desert, it was more of a large outpost than a base. A wall ran along the outside of the base, which left a large gap between the wall and the man structure of the base.

Sterling was in the center tower, Frederick guessed. Where else would he be?

So Frederick made that his destination.

He slipped into the first building with no hindrance. But just as he entered, Frederick made eye contact with a guard.

The guard, fortunately, didn't go for his gun or raise the alarm. Instead, the man brought his fists into a boxer's guard. Frederick replied with a martial arts stance.

The boxer threw his first punch—a haymaker. Frederick grabbed the man's wrist as the punch neared him and let the man's momentum throw himself to the ground.

Frederick kicked the man in the head. That was the end of that guy.

"Brava," said a voice while clapping. "Or is it bravo? I could never be certain."

"Sterling," Frederick grunted, not having to even turn around to meet his foe. Though he did end up turning around, because that was necessary for fighting.

Robin Sterling was dressed in a casual suit holding his signature cane, "I figured they'd send you after me. I mean, who else is competent enough to deal with any situation?"

Frederick didn't say anything. He took a ready stance, much like he had in the previous fight.

"If you insist," Robin said. He approached Frederick and swung his cane at him.

Frederick held up his arm and blocked the blow. It still hurt, but Frederick flung the cane back, unbalancing Sterling slightly. The Hitter kicked his foot out and followed with a punch aimed at Robin's stomach.

The kick hit Sterling in the shin. The man grunted, but paid it no mind. The punch was knocked aside by a flip of Sterling's cane. Frederick, surprised at the sudden block of his punch, stumbled slightly.

Sterling capitalized on it, swinging his cane much like a sword and whacked Frederick in his side. As Frederick involuntarily flinched, Robin brought a foot up and kicked Frederick fight in the chest, knocking his breath out of him.

Frederick hit the ground before he knew it. And Sterling's cane touched his temple in a mocking way. The Hitter took a deep breath and swung his leg out and kicked Sterling.

The Mastermind was caught by surprise. Enough so that he hopped back. Frederick brought his feet up and propelled himself up in the air, landing on his feet.

_Bang!_

Frederick's left leg was hit with a blinding pain and the man was sent to the ground again.

"Guncane," chuckled Sterling, out of breath. Had the fight continued much longer, Sterling would have lost.

Frederick swore at himself for being so unobservant. He reached for his own gun, but with another shot, Sterling shot Frederick through the arm.

"Ah, can't let you do that," Sterling said. "I've used up two of my three bullets, do you really want me to use my third?"

Frederick didn't reply. He clutched his arm in pain, trying to stem the flow of blood as much as he could.

Frederick felt himself getting dragged across the floor. He looked up to see Sterling dragging him with one hand.

"Let's see how your friends do under pressure," Sterling laughed.

* * *

Northern Ylisse: Air Base   
Kellam Anderson

"How soon until we're ready to take off?" Kellam asked.

"Not terribly long," Cormag said. "Twenty minutes?"

"Are you asking me a question?" Kellam asked, coldly.

"No, of course not," Cormag said, his voice turning nervous.

"Any longer than twenty, and you'll pay for it," Kellam threatened. He walked out of the cockpit and down the steps of the plane's side exit. The hanger where the plane was getting ready was massive. Kellam had no idea why they needed a cargo plane, but Robin had ordered him to get one.

"Sir!" one of the grunts who was guarding the hanger ran up to him.

Kellam stared the man down and said, "What?"

The lowly soldier quivered and spoke, "They're here."

Kellam nodded, "I expected as much. Go tell the pilot to be ready when I come back."

The man nodded and quickly left, glad to be away from his boss.

Kellam cracked his knuckles.

Oh, he was going to enjoy this.

* * *

Air Base: Exterior   
Sain Bond

"Glad you could make it," Sain said, shaking Mark's hand.

"Wouldn't miss it," Mark admitted.

" _We_ wouldn't miss it," Farina interjected.

"And you're Stahl?" Sain asked.

The detective nodded, "Stahl Donivore, HBI."

"I understand you're our expert on Anderson. Anything you can tell us?"

"You won't see him coming. He'll do the majority of fighting while covered by his grunts and hired guns," Stahl said. "He'll likely bring the fight to us."

_Bang! Bang! Bang!_

Sain turned to see Hector pointing a gun at the entrance to the base. "Here they come!" he called to the rest of them.

* * *

Air Base: Exterior   
Cath Faraday

The main hanger was where their battle would take place. Kellam's goons had set up some crates and cowered behind them, holding their position. The agents were on either side of the hanger doors, firing as the grunts poked their heads up.

No sign of Kellam.

Cath was with Mark, Farina and the detective, Stahl. And none of them were doing anything, given the heavy fire. Cath tried to get a few shots in, but as soon as she stuck her orange head out, she was bombarded with bullets. Cath was lucky she wasn't hit.

"Detective. I didn't think I'd see you here," a voice said from behind Cath. The Thief turned around to see Kellam Anderson. When had he gotten there!? She had just looked behind her back!

Stahl stood up from his crouched position, but he lacked the speed and reaction time an agent had. Kellam backhanded Stahl off his feet and into the ground a few feet away.

Mark engaged Kellam. The Grifter was no fighter though, and Kellam made short work of him. Kellam Anderson whipped a foot out and struck Mark in the leg.

To Mark's credit, he didn't fall over. The agent stumbled back, and reached for the pistol in his shoulder harness under his trenchcoat.

Kellam grabbed Mark's gun in his hand and thrust the butt of the gun into Mark's face. The gun hit Mark square in the face.

Anderson quickly pressed a pressure point on the agent's wrist. Mark gasped and his grip loosened on the gun. Kellam wrenched it out of his hand, cocked it and pointed it at Mark.

"We can't all be me," Kellam said, and he fired.

* * *

Air Base: Hanger Door   
Hector Asten

Hector saw Kellam Anderson before the other four did from the other side of the hanger.

"Shit," swore Hector said. "Cover me!"

Without even waiting for a response, Hector began to run past the hanger. He barely noticed Sain and Marisa begin to cover him. Renault and Lloyd had gone around to try and find a way to get the soldier from behind.

Hector saw bullets hit near his feet as he ran as fast as he could. In front of him, he saw Kellam Anderson engage Mark Strife. Hector picked up his pace.

_Bang!_

Hector had barely made it ten feet before Kellam shot Mark. The shot seemed to ring out louder than the other gunfire, but Hector barely paid any attention. Nor did he notice the bullet clip his right leg.

Farina jumped at Kellam like a mad woman. The assassin blocked all her strikes, but Farina was moving fast. Kellam seemed surprised at how fast she was moving.

_Bang!_

This time, it was Cath who fired. Kellam had  _ducked_ out of the way in the nick of time, the bullet grazing his short hair.

Kellam kicked Farina in the stomach, sending her flying back. The assassin advanced on Cath.

The orange haired woman began to stand and was much more successful than Stahl had been. But Kellam was one step ahead of her. He grabbed her arm and took his other hand and brought it down on Cath's arm.

Hector was close enough to hear the sickening  _crack._ Cath screamed and fell to the ground, clutching her arm.

Kellam looked up to see Hector approaching. And then Kellam did something that Hector wasn't expecting.

He turned and ran.

* * *

Air Base: Hanger Interior   
Renault Robespierre

Renault opened the side door of the hanger after picking the lock. Lloyd went in first, his pistol pointed forward in anticipation.

Renault loaded a full clip into his automatic rifle. As he turned to see the gunmen firing at his team, Renault brought the gun up to his eyes.

And let loose.

Once the first man was hit, the man next to him turned around to see what had killed his companion. Then he too, died. And so continued the cycle, with the last few managing to get off a few harmless shots.

"Got to the plane," Renault ordered. Lloyd nodded and ran to the steps that led into the plane just behind the cockpit. Renault ran towards the back of the cargo plane. The back flap was hanging open, as if Kellam was going to load something in there.

The man in question ran from a side door like Renault had used and used the flap as a ramp, getting into the plane through the cargo deck.

Renault ran towards the plane as well. But to his surprise, Sain and Marisa both surpassed him in speed and made it to the plane first. Renault made it too, and behind him was the detective and Farina.

* * *

Air Base: Exterior   
Hector Asten

Hector delivered a bone crushing punch to one of the two goons who stopped him. He'd let Farina and Stahl go on ahead.

Hector hadn't thought these two would be so much trouble.

He decided that it was his leg. Hector was finally feeling the pain in his leg. But that didn't stop him from snapping the first man's neck with his strong arms.

Then he heard plane engines.

Shit.

* * *

Air Base: Cargo Plane   
Kellam Anderson

Kellam ran onto the plane, aware that there were several of the agents on his tail.

And there was even one already in the plane, waiting for him.

"Lloyd Reed," Kellam called out, not slowing his run at the man. "You're a traitor, twice over. I should have killed that little girl."

Lloyd held up a gun. He fired. And for once in his life, Kellam wasn't quick enough. The bullet grazed his right shoulder.

But Kellam was ambidextrous, so it wouldn't matter too much. He took  _his_ gun and fired at Lloyd.

A shot to the heart.

The assassin turned around to see some of the agents boarding his plane. He ignored them all except for the one, the older agent who was closest to the outside of the plane.

The engines began to moan. Kellam needed to move. Quickly.

The assassin booked it towards Renault Robespierre. He ducked out of the way of Marisa's fist and Sain Bond missed his shot.

Kellam made it to Renault and threw a punch at him. Unsurprisingly, the WIA agent blocked it and threw his own back.

But Kellam had no time for games. He took his pistol and fired a shot at Renault's feet. Whether intentional or by instinct, Renault jumped slightly, his feet coming apart into a weak stance.

Kellam Anderson jumped kicked Renault in the stomach.

The teal haired man was thrown from the now moving airplane. The assassin quickly hit the button that closed the back of the plane.

"Now it's time to settle this," Kellam said to the four people in the plane with him.

* * *

Air Base: Hanger Doors   
Cath Faraday

Cath cradled her arm against her chest, trying her best not to move it as she sat up.

The sound of the plane moving got her attention. Grabbing her gun, she pointed it up at the plane as it moved forward. Cath whimpered as she accidentally bumped her arm.

The plane drew closer and Cath closed one eye. She took aim at the cockpit area.

_Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!_

Cath emptied her clip at the area of the cockpit. Dropping her gun in defeat, Cath fell onto her back, exhausted.

And bumped her arm again.

"You okay?" Hector asked as he walked up to her.

"Is anyone on the plane with them?" Cath asked.

"Some of them made it," Hector said. "It's up to them now."

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cockpit   
Cormag McCauley

Cormag urged the plane forward. He had no idea what was going on in the cargo deck, but he didn't care. Cormag had orders, and if he didn't obey, Kellam would likely kill him.

Thankfully Cormag had enough of a runway for a take-off. Normally he'd have liked a run way three hundred feet longer just in case, but this would have to do.

Suddenly, something hit the glass of his cockpit. Cormag looked down to see an orange haired woman firing at him.

"What is she—" Cormag was cut off as a bullet pierced the glass and hit him in the shoulder, very close to his neck.

"Shit!" Cormag yelled, lurching forward while somehow maintaining his acceleration forward.

After all, he had orders. And the alternative was death.


	27. The Endgame Job: Part III: Finale

The Endgame Job

Part III: Finale

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Stahl Donivore

"Ugh…" Stahl mumbled as the plane began to move. He wasn't a fan of planes, but the detective couldn't let himself get caught up on that now.

Kellam Anderson and the pink haired woman began to circle each other. What was her name? Mareeta? Marcia? Marisa? The last one sounded right.

Stahl stumbled as the plane rose into the air. No one else did.

Embarrassed and unsure of what to do, Stahl looked towards their target, Kellam Anderson.

Stahl hoped the agents were as good as he'd heard.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cockpit   
Cormag McCauley

Cormag shifted the plane into autopilot as soon as he could, then set about looking for a first aid kit. The agent who shot at him had gotten him good. The blood flow didn't seem to even lessen when Cormag put a hand over his wound and applied pressure.

Cormag stumbled as the plane hit some turbulence. Swearing, he looked around wildly for the first aid kit.

Breathing a sigh of victory, Cormag grabbed it from under the copilot's seat. Who puts the first aid kit there? If Cormag had been paying attention to his classes in pilot school, he'd probably know. Although, who really gets shot inside the cockpit of a plane?

Cormag did, clearly.

Struggling, Cormag opened the kit with his uninjured arm, his left arm. And then he worked about wrapping his arm up with his one good arm.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa approached Kellam. The two of them stood in the middle of the Cargo Hold. Crates lined the outer walls, so the middle was clear for Marisa.

Kellam didn't say anything. He met Marisa's gaze with silence equal to hers. Then he pounced like a cat.

His arm swung out, his fist aimed for a left hook. Marisa ducked back, the fist only brushing against her chin.

Marisa stumbled back and reaffirmed her stance. As Kellam began to approach her, Marisa kicked off the floor with her foot. As she sailed towards Kellam, she raised a fist.

To her surprise, her hand collided with Kellam's face, sending him stumbling back. For a moment, Marisa allowed herself a grin.

But Kellam had other plans. Quick as lightning, he jumped forward and wrapped his arm around her neck. Marisa was forcefully turned to face Sain, with her body being used as a shield.

"Now what's your move, Bond?" Kellam shouted over the roar of the engines.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Sain Bond

Sain swore silently as the gun he pointed was useless. He wasn't going to shoot Marisa. Sure, maybe he could take out Kellam with Farina, but Sain didn't want to try his chances.

"Throw me the gun, or I'll strangle her," Kellam shouted.

Sain was about to toss it over, hoping Marisa would be able to snatch it out of the air. But as he was doing so, the plane abruptly tilted and Sain was knocked off his feet by something.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Farina Dale

Farina watched on the sidelines as Sain was knocked over by one of the crates along the side of the plane. As he was being knocked over, he fired his gun.

The bullet shot towards Kellam, who had the foresight to jump to his left while still holding Marisa.

Which meant the bullet hit Farina as she had been sneaking up on Kellam.

The little piece of metal ripped through her mid-chest. The blue haired agent let out an loud cry, giving her position away. Kellam turned and watched Farina carefully. She no longer had the element of surprise on her side.

But someone else did.

Stahl lunged from his cover. He had a knife in his hand, and stuck it in Kellam's back.

The assassin screamed in pain and whipped around, turning on Stahl. But unfortunately for him, he'd loosened his grip on Marisa during his burst of pain. The pink haired woman slipped his grasp and grabbed the knife out of Kellam's exposed back.

Kellam roared, but didn't advance on Marisa. He delivered a vicious kick to Stahl's face before spinning on the spot.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Marisa Beckett

Marisa stabbed at Kellam with the knife. The assassin blocked the attack with two chops to her wrist. Marisa cursed her incompetence as she involuntarily let the knife fly from her hand.

Kellam launched a foot out into Marisa's shin, sending her down to one knee. The WIA agent brought up an arm and saved her head from Kellam's next kick.

Unperturbed, Kellam shot his other foot out and smashed Marisa right in the neck.

Marisa fell backward and crumpled.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Sain Bond

Sain advanced on Kellam, holding the knife Marisa had lost. Getting the knife had cost him the chance to save Marisa from Kellam, but Sain needed a weapon after having dropped his gun.

"God damn," Kellam swore as he saw Sain approaching him. "There's always another one of you to interfere when I'm making progress."

"That's what we're paid to do!" Sain said before he began to swing the knife like a madman.

Kellam began to duck back and forth, allowing none of Sain's strikes to hit him. Sain frowned with annoyance as he began to take riskier lunges.

It would end up biting him in the ass, when Kellam grabbed his wrist and broke it with one hand.

Sain screamed and dropped the knife. But the pain was only just beginning. Kellam clenched his fist around the broken bone.

Sain fell to his knees, tears running down his face as he tried to escape Kellam's grasp.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Farina Dale

Farina scooped up Sain's gun and pointed it at Kellam. Thankfully, Sain had fallen to his knees, making her shot easier.

But it still wasn't an easy task for Farina while she had a bullet in her chest.

None the less, Farina found her mark and fired.

_Bang!_

The agent saw Kellam reel back, grasping his forearm. He locked eyes with Farina and turned away from her.

Farina blinked, confused. And that one moment of confusion led to her downfall. Instead of shooting Kellam, she watched what he did.

Kellam took the knife and threw it with frightening speed at the wall near the back of the plane.

It smashed through the glass, hitting the button labeled, "EMERGENCY HATCH OPEN."

"Oh shit," Farina said before she heard the siren that sounded after the button was pressed.

The huge plane door behind her began to open all too quickly. Farina dashed forward, looking for something to hold on to.

She didn't make it. Kellam suddenly was in her way. He delivered a powerful punch to her stomach.

Her wounded stomach.

Farina cried out as she fell backwards. She dimly felt Kellam's foot collide with her side as she tried to snap out of her haze.

But then she was flying through the air. Farina opened her eyes, and looked toward the ground. The rapidly increasing in size ground.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Sain Bond

Sain's face lost all color as he heard Farina's fading screams. Then, there was silence. Only the roar of the engines could be heard, but Sain no longer heard them.

He stood up, ignoring the intense pain in his right hand. He began to walk towards Kellam.

The assassin turned around and stood still as Sain approached him. Kellam knew Sain was in no condition to fight, so he saw no need to take any measure.

Sain threw a punch, but it was sluggish and Kellam caught it in his hand. He quickly threw out a leg and tripped Sain.

Kellam dragged Sain's body to the edge of the plane, so his head was the only part of his body hanging off the plane. "You see this Mr. Bond?" shouted Kellam. "I have always wondered what it would be like to smash into the ground. Perhaps you can tell me if you survive."

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cargo Hold   
Stahl Donivore

"Like hell that'll happen!" Stahl shouted as he tackled Kellam.

Off the side of the plane.

Stahl looked into Kellam's eyes and saw fear. The assassin tried in vain to grab the edge of the plane. Stahl grinned as Kellam failed.

"This is for the people you have killed and everything you have done!" shouted Stahl.

Kellam roared with fury as the two fell through the air, gravity bringing them closer and closer to earth. The assassin grabbed Stahl's head with one hand and his neck with another and broke his neck.

Stahl's laugh was silenced.

* * *

Cargo Plane: Cockpit   
Cormag McCauley

Cormag pinched himself, trying to keep his eyes open. His grip on the throttle was weak, and he could barely maintain the plane's altitude.

"Damn…that girl got me good," Cormag muttered, reaching into his pocket. Despite his makeshift bandage, it wasn't enough to stop the blood.

He pulled out a revolver. Pointing it at the console in front of him, he fired three times in key positions, rendering it useless. Then he aimed at the glass above him.

"Orders are orders," Cormag murmured. He fired the last three bullets into the glass. It shattered, and Cormag flew out of the cockpit.

* * *

Abandoned Base: Exterior   
Stefan Gerrard

Stefan dropped the machine gun as it ran out of bullets. He got behind one of the walls as responding fire shot make at him and his other agents.

The Director frowned as he looked around at everyone. They were certainly ill equipped to fight off Sterling's men. Frederick was off hunting down Sterling, and Virion was picking off guards on the walls. That left Stefan and Gaius as the competent members of the group.

"Hold your fire!" shouted Sterling over the gunfire. Almost immediately, the shooting stopped as Sterling walked out from the base, a gun pointed at Frederick's head.

"I know you're there, Stef. Why don't you come out and have a chat with me?" Sterling called out.

Stefan was about to walk out and greet his enemy as a hand touched him on the shoulder. Virion stood behind him, "You take his attention, and I'll take his life."

Stefan nodded and stepped out of his cover. He slowly walked towards Sterling, hoping that the rest of his team was taking cover.

"I suppose you sent Frederick here ahead of you?" Sterling asked, poking Frederick with the barrel of the gun.

"Something like that," Stefan said, shifting his feet. He still had a small revolver in his pocket. If the Director could reach it, he could kill Sterling right here and now.

Or he could let Virion do his job. Stefan thought quickly about how to divert Sterling's attention.

"What brings you to my humble abode this night?" Sterling asked.

"Where's the Rabbit's Foot?" Stefan said.

"Inside," Sterling shrugged. "I couldn't get a trigger, your agents saw to that. But I was able to get a rather…unconventional method working."

Stefan's face paled, "You're not serious, are you?"

Sterling chuckled, "It's hooked up to another missile. Anderson is bringing a plane to this location that we're going to use to drop the bomb on a city of our choosing."

"Shit," whispered Stefan.

"Exactly," Robin smirked.

At that moment, Frederick made a grab for the gun in Sterling's hand. He succeeded in wrapping his hand around the barrel and began to push it away.

Sterling fired the gun. The bullet ripped through Frederick's skull.

Stefan blinked in surprise. One of his best agents was gunned down in front of him. With fury displayed on his face, Stefan attacked Sterling.

Robin tried to block the Director's attack, but the gun in Sterling's hand was sent flying out of his grasp by Stefan. Robin stumbled back, righting himself up with his cane.

Said cane flipped in his hand and pointed at Stefan. The green haired man narrowed his eyes, wondering what Sterling was doing.

"You slipped up. Maybe if you had been paying closer attention…" Robin clicked the trigger and the guncane fired.

* * *

Abandoned Base: Exterior   
Virion Chandler

Virion took the sniper rifle and zeroed Sterling in on his sights just as Stefan was shot. Virion didn't pay any attention to Stefan, the Director would be alright. He always was. He had to be.

Though to get a clear shot at Sterling, Virion had to jump from out of cover. And he did.

Sterling saw Virion before the agent got a chance to aim and fire. Robin Sterling brought up the guncane and pointed it at Virion. The agent brought his rifle and pointed it at Sterling.

_Click!_

_Bang!_

Confusion flashed over Sterling's face as his guncane refused to fire. Virion's weapon, did not.

The bullet hit Robin Sterling directly in the neck.

* * *

The Endgame Job  
Mission:  **Accomplished**

* * *

"So I guess this is where we part ways?" Canas asked Colm in the airport.

Colm nodded, "Yeah, I've got to get back to Neimi. No doubt she's crying about whether I'll come back or not." Colm held out his hand.

"Have a nice trip. If you ever need help with something, call me up," Canas smiled, shaking Colm's hand.

"Will do," Colm smirked and left.

**Canas Lannister**  
Loation: Ylisstol  
Canas continued to work at the YIA for many years. Though he preferred to work behind the scenes, sometimes he'd come out into the open if the Director ordered him to.

**Colm Fletcher and Neimi Fletcher**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Colm and Neimi came out of hiding after Sterling's death. Queen Emmeryn offered them a place in Ylisstol, and they accepted. Colm never worked for another agency again. But that didn't stop him from being called for several jobs, all of which he turned down to Neimi's relief.

* * *

"You two are to go back to base," Colby instructed. "Round up every agent we've got that isn't in active field duty."

"Why?" Lon'qu asked.

"Because I said so," Colby said, walking away from the car.

Lon'qu turned to Levin, "Any idea what that was about?"

Levin shook his head, "Nope."

**Levin Jacobson**  
Location: Unknown  
After Colby Arturian dissolved the WIA, Levin became a freelance Hacker. He would work any job for the right price. Though rumor had it that he would give a discount to old WIA friends.

**Lon'qu Zalman**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Lon'qu, like some of the other WIA agents, turned to the YIA for his next job opportunity. The Director hired him in a heartbeat. Lon'qu became known worldwide in the intelligence business as one of the best Hitters alive.

**Colby Arturian**  
Location: Unknown  
Colby Arturian dissolved the WIA. He believed that the agency produced too many agents that were too powerful, such as Kellam Anderson. Mysteriously enough, after this declaration Colby vanished and was never seen again.

* * *

Emmeryn stared out the window of her room, barely breathing as she heard the news from one of her servants.

"You can go, Alan," Emmeryn spoke in a voice just above a whisper.

Alan bowed, and retreated from the room.

And it was then, and only then that Emmeryn allowed herself to cry.

**Emmeryn Caverly**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Upon hearing the news of her beloved's death, Emmeryn resolved to keep Ylisse in peace. Peace talks flourished between Plegia and Regna Ferox. Emmeryn Caverly was hailed as the Queen who brought Ylisse into an era of peace.

* * *

"You'd do well with the HBI," Maribelle said.

"I'll consider it," Karla said.

" _We'll_  consider it," Fir interjected.

Claude laughed and Chrom pulled Karla to the side. "Do you and Fir need a place to stay?" Chrom asked.

Karla shrugged, "We can make do."

"Then let me help. You two can have rooms in the castle. I'll even take you out to eat," Chrom flashed a grin.

"Are taking me on a date?" Karla quirked an eyebrow.

Chrom blushed, but didn't deny it.

**Claude Trematir**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Claude resumed his work at the Church of Naga. He tried to swear off killing, and sometimes it worked for a while. But there always seemed to be a reason Claude Trematir was needed by someone for a job.

**Maribelle Adalric**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Maribelle continued as the Director of the HBI for many years. Though when it came time for her to retire, she was reluctant to do so. When asked why, she would respond, "I can't help but worry who will take my place."

**Fir Sharp**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Fir took Maribelle's offer and became part of the HBI. She worked alongside the police most of the time and fought gangs and corruption on the streets.

**Chrom Caverly**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Chrom climbed the ranks of the HBI alongside his partner, Karla. The two of them were seen as the HBI's best agents. And when it came time for Director Maribelle to retire, Chrom Caverly was her request to become the next Director.

**Karla Sharp**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Karla also accepted Maribelle's offer and became part of the HBI. But that was not the only offer she accepted. Chrom got his date with Karla. The two worked side by side in the HBI, making an excellent team. And when Chrom was appointed Director, his wife Karla cheered him on.

* * *

"What do you mean we haven't found Rath Sacae's body?" Matthew growled.

"Uh…exactly what part was unclear?" asked the police officer.

"It is of the utmost importance that we can find his body so as to confirm his death," Leila said. "Right Gregor?"

"Gregor is agreeing!" the Chief shouted.

A phone began to ring. Heather flipped her cellphone open and said, "Hello?"

The other detectives couldn't help but look on with interest.

"He's  _what?_ " Heather gasped in horror.

**Gregor Marshall**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Gregor declared Detective Inspector Stahl Donivore a hero. The Chief continued to work in Stahl's memory, which included making Stahl's team an official part of the YPD. Gregor appointed Leila as its leader.

**Legault Adair**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Legault went back to work for the HBI full time. After a couple more years, he retired. Soon after, he married and lived a full life.

**Mia Meridas**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Mia was promoted to a full time Detective. While she hadn't known Stahl for very long, Mia comforted Heather who had known him for a long time. Mia went on to become a Detective Inspector, a rank many said she deserved.

**Heather Starr**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Heather was hurt deeply by the death of her friend. With help from her girlfriend, she was able to learn how to deal with it. Heather eventually became the leader of the Police-HBI team after Leila was no longer in charge.

**Matthew Brooks**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Matthew married Leila soon after Stahl's death. The newly minted Detective Inspector said, "He wouldn't really want me moping around." Matthew enjoyed a long life with his beloved, Leila.

**Leila Gryfflet**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Leila worked hard to lead the Police-HBI team that Stahl had started. But when at long last Gregor retired, he selected Leila to succeed him. Leila handed her previous job off to Heather. Leila and Matthew lived a life of happiness with their children.

**Rath Sacae**  
Location: Unknown  
No one knows what happened to Rath and Lyn. A few rumors came up over the years, such as how a member of the Church of Naga remembered wedding two people who fit their description. Rath was pronounced dead, and Lyn missing. Rumor has that they're living in rural Ferox—off the grid.

* * *

"Where to now?" Edward asked.

Haar snored. Jill elbowed him to wake up.

"…What? Oh, we're going to Plegia. I hear there's some nice things to grab there."

Jill sighed, "You say that about everywhere."

"Well, what have we got to lose?" Haar grinned.

**Edward Jenson**  
Location: Plegia City  
Edward continued to work alongside his friends, Haar and Jill. As Haar said, they went to Plegia City. Naturally, they got involved in some sort of life threatening business that they managed to escape with their lives.

**Haar and Jill Vard**  
Location: Plegia City  
The two thieves went back to stealing. Though occasionally they could be found responsible for stealing from other thieves and giving back stolen items to their rightful owners.

* * *

"Will you accept this responsibility?" Emmeryn asked Sigurd.

The blue haired man nodded, "I will. I doubt there is anyone else who can do it."

Emmeryn nodded approvingly, "I wish you the best of luck, Director."

**Sigurd Di'Arganan**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Sigurd was appointed the Director of the YIA. He tried his best to live up to his predecessor. Most said he had, but Sigurd would always shake his head with disagreement. He and his wife Tiltyu did their best to ensure the world would not fall into chaos.

* * *

"Another assignment?" Ishtar raised an eyebrow.

"Another Sleeper agent assignment," Priam corrected.

"At least that's something easy," Ishtar said.

**Priam and Ishtar Reeves**  
Location: Plegia City  
Priam and Ishtar were both put on an undercover assignment in Plegia City. Not that either minded. Sigurd told them that they'd likely never have to do anything. The pair enjoy their time together after having been apart for so long.

* * *

"I'm surprised we made it out alive," Marisa said.

"Thankfully there were parachutes," Sain said.

"I was referring to the whole part of it where we each had broken bones and concussions," Marisa smirked.

"I suppose that makes sense," Sain grinned. "Fortunately I was able to wake you up."

**Sain Bond**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Sain settled down after Kellam's death. And by settling down, that meant Sain got into a relationship and started working locally. Sigurd needed Sain's help at the YIA constantly, and Sain enjoyed being able to help.

**Marisa Beckett**  
Location: Ylisstol  
With the end of the WIA, Marisa became a full time Prosecutor with Virion. The two eventually got married, to many people's surprise. Marisa never picked up a gun again.

* * *

"What are you going to do now?" Hector asked.

"I'm not sure," Cath admitted. "What about you, Renault?"

"I think I'll go back to being Chief Prosecutor," Renault mused. "I always was good at that. Especially since there's no WIA anymore."

"I wonder what Colby was thinking when he did that," Cath thought aloud.

**Hector Asten**  
Location: Unknown  
Hector continued his work as a freelance agent. Sometimes he worked with the YIA, sometimes he wouldn't. But every time, Hector refused to endanger innocent lives.

**Renault Robespierre**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Renault lived up to his word and continued his work as Chief Prosecutor. He was pleased to see both Virion and Marisa do the same and continue as their lives had been. Renault was the best at what he did, and put away more criminals than both his predecessors combined.

**Cath Faraday**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Cath finally agreed to Sain's offer of a date. A couple years later, they got married, much to Gaius' surprise. The two siblings grew closer, and forgave each other for everything.

* * *

"What are we going to do with this?" Gaius asked, holding up the Rabbit's Foot they had taken from Sterling's base.

"We're going to make sure no one can ever get to it again," Virion said. "We'll have Sigurd hide it or dismantle it."

"Sounds like a plan," Morgan said.

"We certainly don't want this ever happening again," Anna spoke.

Lissa chuckled, "You said it."

**Virion Chandler  
** **Location: Ylisstol**  
Virion made his last act as a YIA agent to be getting rid of the Rabbit's Foot. He and Sigurd had it safely destroyed. Virion then became a full time Prosecutor and married Marisa. He claimed to have, "The most exquisite life with the most beauteous woman ever."

**Lissa Caverly**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Lissa continued with YIA, working with Canas behind the scenes. She helped Sigurd destroy every record of the Rabbit's Foot. Lissa never killed anyone in her career in the YIA, and she continued that for the rest of her days.

**Morgan Cassidy**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Morgan kept up her stealing habits. She left the YIA and became a regular thief. She was happy with life and helped her aunt out at the store sometimes.

**Gaius and Anna Faraday**  
Location: Ylisstol  
Gaius and Anna got married, to no one's surprise. Gaius still worked at the YIA while Anna worked her shop. The two spent lots of time together and couldn't be happier.

* * *

**Impossible Emblem  
** _**Fin** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, we're not done just yet


	28. The After Hours Job

Job #11: The After Hours

Ylisstol: Valmese Embassy   
Pelleas Demoux

Extracting the keycard out of his suit, Pelleas swiped it at the elevator's keypad. The green light  _dinged!_

Stepping into the confines of the elevator, Pelleas was followed by his bodyguard Maris Adriana. Without any noise, Pelleas took a key from his pocket and unlocked the compartment below the emergency phone.

Inside was a single button that read B3.

"Basement three?" Maris asked.

"Top secret. Only I know about it, and now you," Pelleas answered. "No one on the outside is even supposed to know we had a basement two."

"The perks of being a bodyguard," Maris snorted, leaning against the elevator wall.

Pelleas pushed the button, and the elevator began its quick descent. After nearly a minute, the box came to a halt deep beneath the ground.

The doors opened to reveal a surprisingly well lit large room whose walls were lined with filing cabinets. At the center sat a small computer that was a decade behind the times.

Pelleas walked over to the far side of the room and pulled a filing cabinet open. Maris caught up slowly, looking around the room suspiciously.

"What's even supposed to be here?" she asked, frowning at all the shadows.

"Remember all that mess in Ylisse with Sterling a few years ago?" Pelleas said, continuing his search.

"That thing with the Rabbit's Foot?" Maris asked. "It came up in security briefings at the time when Sterling was on the move."

"Well, the YIA decommissioned it. It's destroyed and every electronic record is gone," Pelleas explained.

"So why are we here…?" Maris prompted.

"They got every hard copy too," Pelleas smirked. "It was quite an achievement of international cooperation. However," he paused for effect as he pulled a file out of the cabinet. "I managed to hire someone to grab a copy of the plans for me. And I hid them here."

Stamped in red on the folder was: TOP SECRET. CODENAME: RABBIT'S FOOT.

"You mean…?"

"With this intel, I can build another Rabbit's Foot and take control of whatever I want," Pelleas smirked.

* * *

Valmese Embassy: Ballroom   
Sain Bond

"Observer, I've lost sight of the prize," Sain muttered as he twirled Cath in a fancy dancing maneuver.

" _Copy that, I see him,"_ Lissa Caverly answered.  _"He's entering an elevator on your left. His bodyguard is with him."_

"Is Hector in position?" Cath spoke, rejoining her hands with Sain's.

" _Negative, he's been delayed. There's a five minute gap between you and him,"_ Lissa replied.

"Damn," muttered Sain. "Let's move. We'll delay Demoux until Hector gets here."

The couple left the dance floor mid-song and made their way to the elevator. Pelleas Demoux's elevator closed, and separated the YIA agents from their quarry.

"Sigurd, get us that elevator," Sain said, touching his hand to his ear piece.

" _Shouldn't I be the one giving orders? You know, because I'm the Director?"_ Sain could heard Sigurd's laughter under the words.

"Stay serious, if what Hector told us was true, then we need to get our game faces on," Cath headed off the discussion.

" _Copy that,"_ Sigurd answered. " _The elevator is coming back to you."_

Seconds later, the elevator arrived. Sain and Cath stepped in and waited for the doors to close.

" _Someone's coming to the elevator. Make sure they don't get in,"_ Lissa spoke up.  _"Quick!"_

Cath grabbed Sain and pulled him down into one of the most uncomfortable to watch kisses that many would ever see in their lives.

They held it until the doors closed. Sain gasped as they broke apart, "Damn, if you'd wanted to kiss me that much, you only had to ask."

"I'll save it for the wedding," Cath smirked. She reached down to her leg. Under her dress, she removed a gun.

"You sure you can wait that long?" he grinned.

"Sain?"

"Alright, I'll shut up," smirked the brown haired agent. He pulled the same kind of pistol from the holster under his arm that Cath had.

At long last, the elevator slowed to a halt at the third basement. Sain and Cath brought their guns up at the ready.

The doors opened to reveal a large filing room. At the other end stood the prize and his bodyguard. The two in questioned turned around, with Maris taking her gun and returning the stance that Sain and Cath modeled.

"Mr. Bond," Pelleas greeted. "And Ms. Faraday. I should have known it was you two, and that this room wouldn't have been a secret to your agency."

"The YIA deals in secrets," Sain smirked. "We know them all."

"Oh, do you?" Pelleas raised an eyebrow. "That would be quite an achievement, to know every  _single_ secret."

"Put the weapon down, or we'll shoot," Cath ordered.

"Like, for example," Pelleas continued, "you would know that I have another man in this room."

Sain's eyes bulged and he swung his head around, looking for any sign of movement.

"Mr. Anderson, if you will," Pelleas cued.

From the shadows stepped Kellam Anderson, sporting a bald head and a handgun.

"You!" Sain gasped. "Donivore threw you out of an airplane! How can you have survived?"

"I am Kellam  _fucking_ Anderson," the imposing man smirked. With a cock of his handgun, he continued, "Of course I survived."

* * *

Valmese Embassy: Third Basement   
Cath Faraday

"Hold you fire, Anderson," Pelleas ordered. "We wouldn't want to take a chance at alerting the guests at the party above."

"Drop your weapons," Kellam ordered, motioning with his gun at the two agents.

"We've got the same number of guns pointed at each other," Cath said. "I don't see why we should listen to you."

"It's simple, because I'm better than you," smirked Kellam. "Now drop them."

Sain bent down and lay his firearm on the ground. Cath did the same, albeit far more reluctantly.

"Excellent," Pelleas clapped his hands together. "Anderson, Maris, we're leaving. Leave these two down here. We'll cut off the elevator and let them suffocate."

"Hmph," Kellam titled his pistol down slightly in a more relaxed position. The three moved to the elevator and entered it, leaving the members of the YIA behind.

* * *

Valmese Embassy: Exterior   
Hector Asten

"I'm in position," Hector announced, pulling up outside the building on his motorcycle.

" _Demoux just exited the elevator with his bodyguard and Kellam Anderson,"_ Lissa said.  _"Sain and Cath are trapped in the basement."_

"I thought Anderson was dead?" Hector grumbled, leaning on the handlebars of the motorcycle.

" _Surprise,"_ Lissa growled.

" _They're going to separate,"_ Sigurd spoke.  _"Demoux will go one way, and Anderson the other. This may be our only chance to get Anderson for good."_

"And how are we going to follow them?" Hector asked.

" _Sain and Cath are scaling the elevator shaft since Demoux screwed with the system,"_ Lissa said.  _"They'll be there in three minutes, minimum."_

" _Hector, you go after Kellam,"_ Sigurd ordered.  _"I'll take Demoux."_

"And how do you plan to do that?" Hector asked.

Sigurd laughed,  _"I commandeered a helicopter from the police. And a coconspirator."_

"What the fuck, Sigurd," Hector mumbled.

" _Here they come,"_ Lissa interrupted.

Pelleas Demoux walked out of the Embassy with Maris at his back. A man wearing a hooded sweatshirt followed from a short distance away.

Hector looked above his motorcycle to see a helicopter leisurely cruising by. It was flying too low to be anything but Sigurd.

Anderson broke off from Demoux and headed to the parking garage that was unattractively planted right next to the Embassy.

"I'm in pursuit," Hector said, stepping away from his motorcycle and following the hooded man.

Anderson stepped into the stairwell and began to ascend within the parking garage. Hector, staying out of sight, followed him up the stairs and onto the third floor.

_Riiiiiiing! Riiiiiiiing!_

Hector froze, his hand reaching to his cellphone. But it wasn't his that was ringing, but Anderson's.

"What?" Anderson growled, his voice unmistakably the man Hector had hunted several years ago.

It were times like these Hector wished he were good with computers. At least good enough to tap into Kellam's phone from his position and hear what the caller said.

"I'm in the garage, picking up my car," Kellam said, his voice quickly turning from his gruff tone to an annoyed one.

Hector reached to his back and pulled the pistol from the holster on his belt.

"I spent a shit ton of money on my car," Kellam barked. "I'm not leaving it. You can survive without me for ten minutes."

Anderson abruptly hung up his phone, swearing under his breath.

"Hands where I can see them, Kellam," Hector spoke up, pointing the firearm at Anderson's back.

* * *

Valmese Embassy: Exterior   
Pelleas Demoux

Pelleas slipped his phone back into his pocket with the shake of his head.

"Is he being difficult?" Maris asked.

"He's picking up his car. We'll need to wait for him, I suppose," Pelleas groaned. "Doesn't he realize that I have plans that could topple the world in my pocket—"

"That helicopter's flying kind of low," Maris observed. "It isn't moving very much, either."

Pelleas stopped talking and looked to the sky.

"Oh, shit," Pelleas realized.

* * *

Helicopter   
Sigurd Di'Arganan

"You want to get a move on?" Sigurd asked. "I can't hold this helicopter level without him getting suspicious."

"We're in a damn city," Virion replied. "That means people walking in front of the target  _constantly._  Do you want me to kill civilians?"

"No," Sigurd spoke quickly.

"Good," Virion replied, his eye down the scope of his gun. "Now, let's be clear. No more jobs after this."

"You sure?" the Director asked. "I know a prosecutor pays well but—"

"No more jobs," repeated Virion. "I've got a wife, and we promised each other that we'd do no more jobs."

"So what's this one?" Sigurd asked, curiously.

"Unfinished business," Virion muttered. His finger pressed down on the trigger, and the gun punched back into his shoulder. Not even a second after the shot, Virion fired again.

"Success?" Sigurd asked.

"Demoux and his bodyguard are dead. Now have someone get those plans, and get me back to the police station," Virion said, packing up his rifle.

* * *

Valmese Embassy: Third Basement   
Sain Bond

"They make this look easy in movies," Sain grumbled. He positioned a foot on the inch wide ledge and began to force open the dual doors in front of him while at the same time hanging from the elevator cord with one hand.

"You're at least doing something. I'm just hanging here, waiting for my arms to give out," Cath said, her hands wrapped tightly around the thick black cord.

"Oh, I've been meaning to tell you," Sain began. "I called the florist for our wedding."

"You want to talk about this  _now?_ " Cath asked.

"Oh wait, I got the door. Hang on," Sain gasped, gripping the door and wrenching one side open. "Come on," Sain guided, holding out a hand.

Cath jumped and grabbed his hand. Catching her, Sain raised an eyebrow and said, "Rather risky, eh?"

"Shut up, let's go!" Cath ordered. Sain nodded and let Cath lead him out of the crowd, ignoring the looks the nearby people gave him.

" _Hector went into the parking garage. I haven't heard from him in five minutes,"_ Lissa said.  _"And there aren't cameras in the garage. Can you believe it?"_

"Nope, I can't," Sain said distractedly.

"Lissa, just get us there. We'll handle the rest," Cath said, heading off the rant Lissa was likely to go on about the cameras.

Sain and Cath exited the Embassy and slipped into the stairwell.

" _Third floor,"_ Lissa mentioned.

"Copy that," Sain said. He and Cath pulled their guns out. They pressed their backs against the door, and Sain hit the handle and pushed the door open.

Kellam Anderson looked up from where he stood with a gun pointed at Hector's head.

* * *

Parking Garage: Third Floor   
Cath Faraday

"End of the line, Anderson," Cath threatened, leveling her gun on Anderson.

"I disagree, Ms. Faraday," shrugged Kellam. "I have no intention of surrendering, not when I have leverage."

"I understand the necessity of sacrifice," Hector spoke softly. Sain and Cath exchanged an apprehensive glance.

"Do you? How noble," Kellam shrugged. He poked the gun against Hector's head, "Stand up."

The blue haired agent did as commanded, while Sain and Cath trained their weapons on the bald man.

Kellam Anderson was a large man, but Hector was larger. He obscured the assassin completely except for his feet, which stuck out about an inch further than Hector's.

Sain nodded to her, his eyes flicking over towards their feet. With precise aiming and not a second thought, Cath fired.

Kellam's scream echoed in rage more than pain. A second shot rang out moments after Cath's, piercing Hector through the stomach. Before the blue haired man even hit the ground, Kellam already leapt into the driver seat of his car.

Sain yelled, "Take care of Hector! I'll get Anderson!" The red car that Kellam drove peeled out of its parking spot with Anderson firing shot haphazardly as he steered the car down the ramp.

The YIA agent wildly swung his head around, looking for a quick way down to the ground level. His legs were in motion before his mind even computed the way he'd instinctively chosen.

"Shit shit shit shit shit shit!" Sain bellowed as he jumped off the edge of the third floor.

Fortune smiled upon Sain Bond. Instead of slamming into the cement that certainly would have broken his legs, or even killed him, his shoulder bashed into the roof of a car, leaving a tremendous dent behind.

The car abruptly stopped, and Sain rolled off. Dazed, Sain blinked his eyes open just in time to see a smug Kellam Anderson leave the parking garage.

Whoever was in the car had the police on the line as he looked down at Sain. The agent watched the red car quickly depart.

And then Sain's eyes fell onto Hector's bike.

With maniacal grin spreading on his face, Sain wobbled up and began to limp over to the motorcycle. He grasped his shoulder, was it broken?

He squeezed, and tears leapt from his eyes in the immediate pain that followed. Definitely fractured.

"Good thing it's my left," Sain got on the bike, producing a key from his pocket for his ride.

" _Sain, what the hell are you doing? You're in no condition to chase him!"_ Lissa's shrill voice bounced off his eardrum.

"It's in the job description," Sain gave his head a good shake, dispelling some of his dazed effects. He revved the engine, and finally put the bike in motion.

The pedestrians who'd ignored the motorcycle parked conspicuously outside the Embassy leapt out of the way in fright as Sain accelerated onto the road.

"Alright, here I come, you bastard," Sain murmured, his voice lost over the motorcycle's volume.

Cars veered out of the way as Sain took the center of the road, driving directly on the yellow line. More than once Sain was forced to jerk to the left, evading cars on the right who were too close to him.

Kellam Anderson must have seen him coming, as the red car parted from the steady moving traffic and turned left on the quickest path out of the city.

Sain grit his teeth as he prepared for the turn. Tilting the bike closer to the ground on his left, he made a sharp turn that left a trail of stopped beeping cars behind him.

The cars were far more dispersed on the road now. Sain's bike was thankfully able to keep up with Anderson's automobile, though the distance between them didn't seem to lessen.

"Come on, come on!" Sain whispered, jerking the handlebars to the right lurched him out of the way of a slow moving van.

Now nothing stood between Anderson's car and Sain's bike. The city began to fade away, less and less buildings on either side as the city lessened into a rural interstate road.

Sain accelerated as fast as he could go. Slowly, but surely, he gained on Anderson. Satisfied with his progress, he reached to his holster to grab his pistol.

Empty.

"Fuck!" screamed Sain. He'd had to have dropped it when he jumped.

Soldiering ahead, Sain didn't let up on his pursuit. Anderson noticed the gum on his shoe, and took the initiative to fire at Sain's small form while driving.

The agent hugged the bike, making himself the smallest target possible. His leg nudged against something that felt out of place on the bike.

Glancing to his right, there holstered was a small pistol. Removing it, Sain's elation was outlined with tar.

"Who the hell makes a two bullet pistol?!" Sain yelled at no one in particular. He'd have stern words with Hector if he survived.

Kellam ceased his firing, either having used up his bullets or deciding to conserve them. Sain continued to creep up on his target.

Anderson slammed on his brakes, turning Sain's progress into a collision course. Without much choice, Sain swerved aside and fired his gun at Kellam's direction.

The two agents were close enough that Sain heard Kellam yell, "Dammit!" The YIA agent pursued Anderson as the latter took advantage of the convenient exit off the road.

As he got a short duration down the road, Anderson spun his steering wheel furiously and his car drifted, positioning his vehicle so that Sain drove towards the side of Kellam's car.

Swinging his door open, Anderson stepped out of the still moving automobile. Walking unhindered, Kellam left the car to crash as he now brought his gun to Sain's face and fired.

In a split second decision, Sain leaned the bike low to the ground and slipped off it. Without the weight of its rider, the bike hit the ground. Bouncing off the road, it careened towards Kellam Anderson.

The bald agent ducked low, keeping his pace as the bike sailed over him.

Sain was not as lucky, rolling out of control and finally landing on his fractured shoulder.

He moaned, rolling onto his back to see Kellam Anderson approaching, undeterred by the motorcycle.

The YIA agent's grip tightened on the pistol that had one shot remaining. He raised the gun as quick as he could and clenched his finger on the—

_Bang!_

Anderson's gun hand reacted faster. The bullet struck the gun in Sain's hand, flinging it out of his grasp.

Sain's arm fell back to the ground, useless. He had no tricks up his sleeve, and that fractured shoulder came back with a vengeance without adrenaline's protection.

"Not bad, Bond," Kellam admitted, crouching in front of the YIA agent. "It's been a couple years since I've been pressed that hard. Last time was probably in that plane with you, Donivore and those others."

"How'd you manage to escape?" Sain rasped.

Kellam flung his head back in laughter, "Wouldn't you like to know. Let's just leave it at that I have my ways, and that you should never think yourself free of me."

_Fwip!_

Sain blinked, recognizing the noise. Kellam stared at Sain, not paying attention to the man as he searched his mind for the type of sound.

_Fwip!_

Kellam blinked and leapt backward, his gaze going skyward. He fired a single shot before whoever Sigurd was with fired a returning shot from the helicopter. It struck him in the chest and knocked the assassin off his feet. A second and third shot were consecutively fired, hitting Anderson with close proximity of the first shot.

" _Sorry it took us so long,"_ Sigurd apologized.  _"It was surprising how fast you were going. Virion wasn't able to aim well enough to get a decent shot until now."_

Sain hobbled up to his feet and scooped up the gun Kellam had dropped upon his collision with the ground. With his other hand, the YIA agent gripped Anderson's wrist to feel for a pulse.

_Ba-dump!_

As if functioning independently, Sain's hand brought the gun to Kellam's forehead. Blood was seeping out the back of the man's head. He was unconscious as Sain Bond pulled up his sweatshirt to expose the bullet-proof vest.

"You wily bastard," Sain said, unable to keep a grim admiration from his voice. Kellam Anderson was a sick bastard, but he was a survivor.

Sain pressed the gun against Kellam's head properly, and blasted his skull open.

"Mission accomplished."

* * *

The After Hours Job  
Mission:  **Accomplished**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this five months after the final chapter originally was posted. That's what Mission Impossible 5 did to me
> 
> Final Kill Count: 64


End file.
